Delayed mental development of children. Treatment of zpr. Differences between mental retardation and mental retardation

Each baby is individual. With this famous saying It's hard to disagree. In fact, the mental and physical development of each baby can proceed differently. However, when the process of formation and development of a baby does not significantly meet established standards, this may worry parents. In such cases, some parents decide to seek help from a specialist.

With a thorough and detailed examination, the child may be diagnosed with delayed mental development". What is meant by this diagnosis and what are its main features?

What is ZPR?

Mental retardation is a visible delay in the development of a small person. In other words, non-compliance with certain, generally accepted norms. Mental retardation is observed in children of school age and up to school age. There are ways to help correct and, to some extent, normalize a child’s mental development. We'll talk about them a little later.. Now let's get acquainted with the main reasons for the occurrence of mental retardation in children.

Why may mental retardation occur?

Today, several main reasons are known that contribute to the occurrence of mental retardation in children of school and preschool age. Conventionally, these reasons are divided into two groups: biological and social.

First let's find out the biological factors the appearance of developmental delay. So, these factors are:

The first group of reasons is closely related to the intrauterine development of the child, when health problems appear even during the formation of a small person.

On the social reasons for the appearance of children with mental retardation:

Most social causes of developmental problems in children with mental retardation are associated with educational process. Mental well-being is also affected by the child’s relationship with his parents. If pedagogical influence turns out to be ignored individual characteristics development of the child, this increases the risk of the occurrence and further development of such pathologies as mental retardation. In some cases, mental retardation is simultaneously caused by two factors, both biological and social. It is important to note that social under such circumstances has additional negative effects. It promotes further development biological disorders, which, of course, should be actively combated.

To fight cancer correctly, it is necessary to determine the main symptoms of the pathology. Therefore, further we will talk about the main symptoms of mental retardation in children.

Mental retardation in children: symptoms

Next, we will discuss what symptoms occur with sexually transmitted diseases in children. Experts identify several main symptoms that indicate the presence of mental retardation in children. All of them, one way or another affect the action of mental functions:

Not only the symptoms, but also knowledge of the types of sexually transmitted diseases will help determine the presence of this pathology. In total, there are four main types of mental retardation. Let's pay close attention to each existing species.

ZPR with cerebral-organic genesis. The first type of mental disorder is associated with damage to the vital functions of the body’s central nervous system. During such a lesion, some body functions are partially disrupted. The defeat itself is organic in nature. At the same time, such a delay in mental development does not contribute to the emergence of mental disability. Here are the main symptoms of mental retardation with cerebral-organic origin:

• Slow formation of thinking.
• Slow maturation of the emotional-volitional level.
• Problems with cognitive activity.

ZPR with constitutional genesis. The next type is hereditary in nature (hereditary infantilism). At the same time, different functions of the child’s body are affected, namely psychological, physical and mental. The volitional sphere of development in this case corresponds to the level of development of a preschool child. Although the biological age of the child may be an order of magnitude higher. Children with this type of mental retardation exhibit increased emotional behavior. Staying in good mood, the child is easily emotional. But all experiences are superficial and rather unstable.

Mental retardation with psychogenic origin.

This type, unlike the previous ones, is more social in nature. The development of psychogenic genesis is facilitated by constant stress, as well as depressing and traumatic situations for the child’s psyche. Initially, autonomic functions suffer, and then pathology affects negative impact and on the emotional and mental development of the child. Children with similar problems completely dependent on the external environment and its position.

Mental retardation with somatogenic genesis. But this type of mental retardation occurs for a biological reason. Such causes are infectious diseases and somatic pathologies. Often, developmental problems are caused by diseases of the baby’s mother. The main symptoms or features of this type of cancer are:

Both a decrease in mental tone and the emergence of fears negatively affect the baby’s relationships with people around him and the world as a whole.

Prevention and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases

Mental retardation must be combated without fail. Often this diagnosis is made to children of preschool age (at about 5–6 years old). In some cases, mental retardation occurs already during schooling. When such problems arise, you should decide on the use of control methods as quickly as possible. Usually, a number of pedagogical and psychological procedures are provided to help cope with mental retardation. All procedures must be carried out in a timely manner (it is important not to miss the moment) and, no less important, competently.

Where can I get this kind of help?

In most cases, work with these children is carried out in special sanatoriums and institutions. Multiple treatments are carried out simultaneously experienced specialists. In this case, you cannot do without the help of a speech therapist, psychologist and psychiatrist. In order for treatment to bring the desired result, specialists and parents must become a single team, each member of which makes the maximum contribution to achieve the goal as quickly as possible. The goal of treatment and assistance from doctors is to help the preschool child adapt to the world around him and learn to get along with people.

What stages will such rehabilitation consist of? Here are the two main stages of treatment for mental retardation in school and preschool children:

Medical therapy

First of all, treatment procedures are carried out. Such procedures often include:

Correctional and pedagogical assistance. It consists of measures aimed at correcting the development process. The main factor determining rehabilitation methods is the age and other individual characteristics of the baby. At the moment, several ways to eliminate mental retardation are known. Let's pay attention to them:

Wellness technique. This technique allows you to improve and support the physical and psychological processes of a child’s formation at a certain age stage. The healing technique includes the simultaneous implementation of several important tasks, namely:

Sensory-motor sphere. This technique is more often used when working with school-age children who have deviations in sensory processes and also have problems with the musculoskeletal system. The main goal of this treatment is the formation of the sensory-motor sphere. Thanks to this technique, it is possible to identify and gradually develop creative abilities in children with mental retardation.

Working with emotional awareness. The main goal is to increase emotional awareness in a child with similar mental pathologies. By increasing the child’s awareness, specialists help him perceive and understand the feelings of people around him (including his peers). Children are taught to react correctly to extraneous emotions, and are also helped to learn how to independently control own feelings. This technique is usually used for different degrees and types of mental retardation.

Corrective-compensatory method. This type of treatment may simultaneously include several neuropsychological techniques. The neuropsychological techniques used make it possible to level and successfully hone such vital skills as the ability to write, read and perform arithmetic operations. Without these skills, a schoolchild, as is known, it is difficult to master the school curriculum. In addition, these techniques improve the cognitive skills of children suffering from mental retardation. Corrective-compensatory work allows a child to develop such a necessary quality as focus.

Working with the child’s cognitive activity. Today, the most effective system in this type of treatment is considered psychological impact, which is combined with pedagogical assistance . The purpose of the discussed methodology- align and eliminate existing defects in mental processes.

Each technique is used according to the individual developmental characteristics of the child. Not only specialists, but also parents themselves should take an active part in treatment. Only in this case can the highest possible results be achieved. If a school-age child receives treatment, then after all procedures have been completed, the methodological-psychological-pedagogical council must decide whether the child can study in a regular secondary school or it would be better for the child to receive education at home or in a special institution.

The diagnosis of mental retardation is made mainly in preschool or school age, when the child faces learning problems. With timely correction and medical care It is possible to completely overcome developmental problems, but early diagnosis of pathology is quite difficult.

What is mental retardation?

Mental retardation, abbreviated as MDD, is a lag in development from the norms accepted for a certain age. With mental retardation, certain cognitive functions - thinking, memory, attention, and the emotional sphere - suffer.

Causes of developmental delay

ZPR may arise due to various reasons, they can be conditionally divided into biological and social.

Biological reasons include:

• lesions of the central nervous system during fetal development: injuries and infections during pregnancy, bad habits mothers, fetal hypoxia;
• prematurity, symptoms of jaundice;
• hydrocephalus;
• malformations and neoplasms of the brain;
• epilepsy;
• congenital endocrine pathologies;
• hereditary diseases - phenylketonuria, homocystinuria, histidinemia, Down syndrome;
• severe infectious diseases (meningitis, meningoencephalitis, sepsis);
• heart disease, kidney disease;
• rickets;
• impairment of sensory functions (vision, hearing).

Social reasons include:

• restriction of the baby’s life activity;
• unfavourable conditions education, pedagogical neglect;
• frequent psychological traumas in a child’s life.

Symptoms and signs of developmental delay

Signs of mental retardation can be suspected by paying attention to the characteristics of mental functions:

1. Perception: slow, inaccurate, inability to form a holistic image. Children with mental retardation perceive information better visually than auditorily.
2. Attention: superficial, unstable, short-term. Any external stimuli contribute to switching attention.
3. Memory: visual-figurative memory predominates, mosaic memorization of information, low mental activity when reproducing information.
4. Thinking: disturbance imaginative thinking, abstract and logical thinking only with the help of a teacher or parent. Children with mental retardation cannot draw conclusions from what has been said, summarize information, or draw a conclusion.
5. Speech: distortion of articulation of sounds, limitation of vocabulary, difficulties in constructing a statement, impaired auditory differentiation, delayed speech development, dyslalia, dyslexia, dysgraphia.

Psychology of children with mental retardation

1. Interpersonal communication: children without developmental disabilities rarely communicate with lagging children and do not accept them in games. In a peer group, a child with mental retardation practically does not interact with others. Many children prefer to play separately. During lessons, children with mental retardation work alone, cooperation is rare, and communication with others is limited. Children who are lagging behind in most cases communicate with children younger than themselves, who accept them better. Some kids completely avoid contact with the team.
2. Emotional sphere: children with mental retardation are emotionally unstable, labile, suggestible and not independent. They are often in a state of anxiety, restlessness, and affect. They are characterized by frequent mood swings and contrast in the expression of emotions. Inappropriate cheerfulness and uplifting mood may be observed. Children with mental retardation cannot characterize their emotional state, have difficulty identifying the emotions of others, and are often aggressive. Such children are characterized by low self-esteem, uncertainty, and attachment to one of their peers.

As a result of problems in the emotional sphere and the sphere of interpersonal relationships, children with mental retardation often prefer loneliness; they lose confidence in themselves.

According to the classification by K. S. Lebedinskaya according to the etiopathogenetic principle, ZPR can be of the following types:

1. Delayed development of constitutional etiology is uncomplicated psychophysical infantilism, in which the cognitive and emotional spheres are at an early stage of development.
2. ZPR of somatogenic etiology - occurs as a result of severe diseases suffered during early childhood.
3. Mental retardation of psychogenic etiology is the result of unfavorable upbringing conditions (overprotection, impulsiveness, lability, authoritarianism on the part of parents).
4. ZPR of cerebral-organic etiology.

Complications and consequences of ZPR

The consequences of ZPR are more reflected in psychological health personality. If the problem is not corrected, the child continues to move away from the team, and his self-esteem decreases. In the future, social adaptation of such children is difficult. Along with the progression of mental retardation, writing and speech deteriorate.

Diagnosis of mental retardation

Early diagnosis of mental retardation is difficult. This is due to the fact that to confirm the diagnosis, a comparative analysis of the child’s mental development with age norms is necessary.

The degree and nature of developmental delay is determined collectively by a psychotherapist, psychologist, speech therapist, and defectologist.

Mental development includes assessment of the following criteria:

• speech and pre-speech development;
• memory and thinking;
• perception (knowledge of objects and parts of the body, colors, shapes, orientation in space);
• attention;
• gaming and visual activities;
• level of self-care skills;
• communication skills and self-awareness;
• school skills.

The Denver test, the Bayley scale, the IQ test and others are used for examination.

Additionally, the following instrumental studies may be indicated:

• CT and MRI of the brain.

How to cure mental retardation

The main help for children with mental retardation consists of long-term psychological and pedagogical correction, which is aimed at improving the emotional, communicative and cognitive sphere. Its essence is to conduct classes with a psychologist, speech therapist, defectologist, or psychiatrist.

If psychocorrection is not enough, it is supported by drug treatment based on nootropic drugs.

The main drugs for drug correction:

• Piracetam, Encephabol, Aminalon, Phenibut, Cerebrolysin, Actovegin;
• Glycine;
• homeopathic medicines – Cerebrum compositum;
• vitamins and vitamin-like products – vitamin B, Neuromultivit, Magne B6;
• antioxidants and antihypoxants – Mexidol, Cytoflavin;
• general tonics – Cogitum, Lecithin, Elkar.

Preventing developmental problems

To avoid CPR, you need to follow simple rules:

• create favorable conditions for pregnancy and childbirth;
• create a friendly environment in the family;
• closely monitor the child’s condition from the first days of life;
• promptly treat any kind of disease in the baby;
• engage with the child and develop him with early age.

Of no small importance in the prevention of mental retardation is the physical and emotional contact between mother and baby. Hugs, kisses, and touches help the child feel calm and confident, navigate a new environment, and adequately perceive the world around him.

Doctor pays attention

1. There are 2 dangerous extremes to which many parents of children with mental retardation fall - overprotection and indifference. In both the first and second variants, personality development is inhibited. Overprotection does not allow the child to develop, since the parents do everything for him and treat the student like a little child. Indifference on the part of adults takes away the child’s incentive and desire to develop and learn something new.
2. There are special schools for children with mental retardation or separate classes in general education schools based on a correctional and developmental education model. In special classes, optimal conditions have been created for teaching special children - small numbers, individual sessions that allow you not to miss psychological characteristics child, useful for his development.

The sooner parents pay attention to mental retardation or stop denying it, the higher the likelihood of full compensation for deficiencies in the emotional and cognitive sphere. Timely correction will prevent future psychological trauma associated with the awareness of one’s inadequacy and helplessness in the flow of general learning.

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• Causes of mental retardation
• Symptoms
• Treatment

Mental retardation in children (the disease is often referred to as mental retardation) is a slow pace of improvement of certain mental functions: thinking, emotional-volitional sphere, attention, memory, which lags behind generally accepted norms for a particular age.

The disease is diagnosed in the preschool or primary school period. It is most often discovered during pre-entry testing before school entry. It is expressed in limited ideas, lack of knowledge, inability for intellectual activity, the predominance of gaming, purely childish interests, immaturity of thinking. In each individual case, the causes of the disease are different.

Causes of mental retardation

In medicine, various causes of mental retardation in children are identified:

1. Biological:

• pregnancy pathologies: severe toxicosis, intoxication, infections, injuries;
• prematurity;
• intrauterine fetal hypoxia;
• asphyxia during childbirth;
• infectious, toxic, traumatic diseases at an early age;
• genetic predisposition;
• trauma during childbirth;
• lagging behind peers in physical development;
• somatic diseases (disturbances in the functioning of various organs);
• damage to certain areas of the central nervous system.

2. Social:

• restriction of life activity for a long time;
• mental trauma;
• unfavorable living conditions;
• pedagogical neglect.

Depending on the factors that ultimately led to mental retardation, several types of disease are distinguished, on the basis of which a number of classifications have been compiled.

Types of mental retardation

In medicine, there are several classifications (domestic and foreign) of mental retardation in children. The most famous are M. S. Pevzner and T. A. Vlasova, K. S. Lebedinskaya, P. P. Kovalev. Most often in modern Russian psychology they use the classification of K. S. Lebedinskaya.

1. Constitutional ZPR determined by heredity.
2. Somatogenic ZPR acquired as a result of a previous disease that affected the child’s brain functions: allergies, chronic infections, dystrophy, dysentery, persistent asthenia, etc.
3. Psychogenic mental retardation determined by socio-psychological factors: such children are brought up in unfavorable conditions: monotonous environment, narrow circle of friends, lack of maternal love, poverty of emotional relationships, deprivation.
4. Cerebral-organic mental retardation observed in the case of serious, pathological abnormalities in brain development and is most often determined by complications during pregnancy (toxicosis, viral diseases, asphyxia, alcoholism or drug addiction of parents, infections, birth injuries, etc.).

Each of the types according to this classification differs not only in the causes of the disease, but also in symptoms and course of treatment.

Symptoms of mental retardation

A diagnosis of mental retardation can be made with confidence only on the threshold of school, when obvious difficulties arise in preparing for educational process. However, with careful monitoring of the child, symptoms of the disease can be noticed earlier. These may include:

• skills and abilities lagging behind peers: the child cannot perform the simplest actions characteristic of his age (putting on shoes, dressing, personal hygiene skills, eating independently);
• unsociability and excessive isolation: if he avoids other children and does not participate in common games, this should alert adults;
• indecision;
• aggressiveness;
• anxiety;
• During infancy, such children begin to hold their heads later, take their first steps, and speak.

With mental retardation in children, manifestations are equally possible mental retardation and signs of disturbance in the emotional-volitional sphere, which is very important for the child. Often there is a combination of them. There are cases when a child with mental retardation is practically no different from the same age, but most often the retardation is quite noticeable. The final diagnosis is made by a pediatric neurologist during a targeted or preventive examination.

Differences from mental retardation

If by the end of junior (4th grade) school age signs of mental retardation remain, doctors begin to talk about either mental retardation (MR) or constitutional infantilism. These diseases are different:

• with mental and intellectual underdevelopment, mental and intellectual underdevelopment is irreversible; with mental retardation, everything can be corrected with the proper approach;
• children with mental retardation differ from mentally retarded children in their ability to use the help that is provided to them and independently transfer it to new tasks;
• a child with mental retardation tries to understand what he read, whereas with LD there is no such desire.

There is no need to give up when making a diagnosis. Modern psychology and pedagogy can offer comprehensive assistance to such children and their parents.

Treatment of mental retardation in children

Practice shows that children with mental retardation may well become students in a regular general education school, rather than in a special correctional school. Adults (teachers and parents) must understand that the difficulties of teaching such children at the very beginning of their school life are not at all the result of their laziness or carelessness: they have objective, sufficient serious reasons, which must be jointly and successfully overcome. Such children should be provided with comprehensive assistance from parents, psychologists, and teachers.

It includes:

• individual approach to each child;
• classes with a psychologist and a teacher of the deaf (who deals with children’s learning problems);
• in some cases - drug therapy.

Many parents find it difficult to accept the fact that their child, due to his developmental characteristics, will learn slower than other children. But this needs to be done to help the little schoolchild. Parental care, attention, patience, coupled with qualified assistance from specialists (teacher-defectologist, psychotherapist) will help provide him with targeted upbringing and create favorable conditions for learning.

Mental retardation is a pathological condition that occurs in childhood (preschool and school age). According to statistics, signs of mental retardation in younger schoolchildren negatively affect the academic performance of about 80% of students.

This article will tell you what mental retardation in children is, why such a pathology suddenly arises, what symptoms of mental retardation in children are treated, are there any adverse consequences for mental retardation, how to treat the pathology and carry out preventive measures?

What is mental retardation in a child?

Mental retardation (MDD) is a pathology in which the baby’s development does not correspond to established medical parameters and standards, being at a lower level. Mental retardation causes impairment of certain cognitive functions child's body. For example, such aspects of personality as the emotional and mental sphere, memory and attention suffer.

Why don't all children develop according to norms?

Mental retardation in children can manifest itself for several reasons.

Genetic predisposition. If you look, for example, at children suffering from Down syndrome, they always develop more slowly than their peers. The manifestation of this pathology can be different (both a mild degree of developmental delay and a more serious condition - mental retardation). There are other types of chromosomal disorders that greatly affect the development of intelligence in childhood and the child’s acquisition of new skills and abilities.

Personality disorders associated with autism. Autistic children have great difficulty communicating with their peers. This happens due to a disturbed perception of the world. Depending on what form autism takes (mild or severe), the child’s interaction with society is either severely limited or becomes impossible altogether. The nature of childhood autism is still controversial among many experts. None of the scientists can unambiguously answer whether autism is a genetic pathology, or whether it is a mental illness.

Birth injury. If a child experiences a state of hypoxia (chronic or acute lack of oxygen) during its intrauterine development, then this negatively affects the functioning of its brain. As a result, after birth, problems arise with the normal mental development of a child of preschool and primary school age.

The impact of unfavorable factors on a pregnant woman’s body causes the development of mental retardation in the child. If during the period of intrauterine gestation a woman takes potent medications, works in hazardous work conditions, drinks alcohol, drugs, smokes cigarettes, or suffers an infectious disease, this is not in the best possible way affects the mental development of her unborn baby.

Mental trauma. If a child suffers a strong emotional shock in early childhood, his intellectual development can slow down greatly or even “roll back” far back.

Less common causes

Somatic diseases. Their influence on intellectual and mental health the baby can be direct and indirect. If a child has been sick a lot since childhood and is constantly in a hospital ward, this will definitely affect his mental state, skills and thinking.

Unfavorable psycho-emotional situation within the family. In order for a preschooler (schoolchild) to develop normally and in accordance with medical standards, he must be surrounded by an atmosphere of love and care. Parents should show a lot of attention to the little inhabitant of the house. If the family in which the child is growing up experiences serious difficulties (for example, lack of money, serious illness of one of the parents, lack of good housing, the presence of violence in any form (physical or psychological), drug addiction or alcoholism in parents) - this is undoubtedly affects the mental development of the little person. If a child does not have congenital abnormalities at the mental level, then living in a dysfunctional family provokes their appearance.

Sensory functions in the child’s body are impaired. Bad job organs of hearing and vision prevent the baby from learning about the world around him. If the problem of deafness or blindness cannot be eliminated, then the poor situation with mental development only gets worse. The child lacks the available means for full interaction and communication with people around him, so his mental development slows down.

Pedagogical neglect. The correct and normative mental development of children largely depends on whether their parents work with them, whether they help them explore the world around them and discover something new in it, whether they contribute to their full and versatile development and proper upbringing.

According to statistics, only 20% of parents read educational books with their children! But this is the guarantee of a future child!

Modern trends show that more and more children suffer from mental development disorders precisely because of pedagogical neglect. Young parents are too involved computer games, and they have no time left for the development of the baby.

In fact, all the reasons for deviations in a child’s mental development from medical norms are divided into:

• biological ( pathological conditions, which develop during the period of intrauterine development of the baby);
• social (related to the child’s living conditions).

Factors leading to mental development delays in children ultimately influence the classification of pathology.

Types of mental development delays in childhood

Constitutional	The main reason for the appearance of constitutional delays in mental development is genetic predisposition and hereditary diseases. Children exhibit such signs as frequent mood swings, unstable attachments to something, pathological and not always appropriate spontaneity, the presence of superficial emotions, and a desire to participate in children's games in adulthood.
Psychogenic	The causes of this type of pathology are social and psychological factors. These include unfavorable living conditions, lack of decent living conditions, lack of attention from parents, serious mistakes and mistakes made by adults in upbringing, insufficient amount of parental love, and serious deviations in spiritual development. In all these cases, the blow falls on the intellectual sphere of the individual. The child suffers from emotional instability, psychosis and neuroses. A deeper consequence of all this is the psychological immaturity of an adult.
Somatogenic	Negative manifestations in the mental development of a child arise due to dysfunction of the brain. They, in turn, are caused by infectious diseases suffered by the mother during pregnancy and their consequences. This type of pathology develops against the background of dystrophies of varying levels of severity, diseases of the cardiovascular system, previous surgical interventions, and allergies (which occur in a severe form). The consequences of somatogenic mental retardation include: whims without reason; increased nervousness; fears; unhealthy complexes.
Cerebral-organic	The appearance of this type of pathology is facilitated by deviations in the development of the baby even at the stage of intrauterine development. If a pregnant woman abuses toxic substances, drugs, tobacco and alcohol, then the risks of developing cerebral-organic mental retardation in the baby increase. Birth injuries also contribute to the appearance of this pathology. Along with mental immaturity, a child with such a pathology often suffers from personal instability and mental instability.

Differences between mental retardation and mental retardation

The manifestation of mental development delays usually continues until the end of primary school age (3-4 grades of school). If the symptoms of the pathology are observed at an older age, doctors already talk about mental retardation. Both pathologies differ from each other in the following aspects:

• mental retardation causes irreversible changes in the intellectual and mental spheres of the individual, and with mental retardation, the underdevelopment of these spheres can be corrected using special techniques;
• children suffering from mental retardation know how to use the help that adults give them, and subsequently apply the experience gained when performing new tasks (with mental retardation, a child will not be able to do this);
• Children with mental retardation always have a desire to understand the information they read, but children with mental retardation do not have this desire.

If a child is diagnosed with mental retardation, there is no need to despair. Today in pedagogy and psychology there are many methods for correcting and eliminating children's mental development delays.

Receiving comprehensive assistance allows special children and their parents to jointly overcome a difficult period of development.

Signs and symptoms of mental retardation in a child

Mental retardation in a child cannot be diagnosed at home. Only an experienced doctor can accurately determine the pathology. However, there are some features by which attentive parents will be able to understand that their child has mental retardation.

1. Socialization is difficult for a child; he cannot fully communicate with his peers or interact with them.
2. A preschooler experiences difficulties in mastering educational material, cannot maintain his attention for a long time in any one lesson, does not concentrate on the teacher’s explanations and is constantly distracted.
3. Any failure for such children becomes a reason for resentment, emotional instability, and vulnerability. They become withdrawn, and children remember disappointments and grievances for a long time.
4. Skills that peers quickly master are difficult for a child with mental retardation to master. He cannot learn basic life skills (dressing, eating, performing hygiene procedures).
5. The child becomes overly anxious and suspicious. He is overcome by unusual fears and aggression appears.
6. Various speech disorders develop.
7. In infants, pathologies of a physical nature often arise against the background of mental developmental disorders. For example, a baby, much later than his peers, begins to hold his head up, talk, crawl, stand and master walking skills.
8. The functions of memory, logic and imaginative thinking in a child with mental retardation are too poorly developed or completely absent. This is especially noticeable in children 2 years and older.

Psychological aspects of the personality of a child with mental retardation

If a child has delays in mental development, he experiences a number of psychological disorders.

1. Difficulties in interpersonal communication. Healthy children in the kindergarten do not want to contact and interact with children who are lagging behind. A child with mental retardation does not want to interact with his peers. Children with mental retardation play independently, and during lessons at school they work separately, having limited communication with other younger schoolchildren. However, their interaction with younger children is more successful, because they accept and understand them well. There are kids who generally avoid contact with their peers.
2. Emotional disorders. Children with mental retardation are psychologically labile, emotionally unstable, suggestible and not independent. They have increased anxiety, state of passion, contrasting emotions, sudden mood swings, anxiety. Sometimes there is an unhealthy cheerfulness and a sudden rise in mood. Children suffering from mental retardation cannot independently characterize their emotional state, and do not distinguish between the emotions of those people who surround them. Tend to show aggression. In addition, they have self-doubt, low self-esteem, and pathological attachment to one (or several) of their peers.

Complications and consequences of mental retardation

The main consequences of mental retardation in children are negative changes in the child’s psychological health. In the case when the problem cannot be corrected, the child further distances himself from the team, and his self-esteem is significantly reduced. The progression of mental development delays causes deterioration in speech and writing functions and difficulties in social adaptation.

Features of diagnosing mental retardation

It is very difficult to diagnose mental development delays in children in the early stages. Difficulties arise from the fact that specialists need to compare and analyze existing mental condition a preschooler with the age standards that exist in medicine.

Before determining the level and nature of mental retardation, a medical consultation is held, which includes a defectologist, speech therapist, psychologist and psychotherapist.

They evaluate the following developmental criteria for a young patient:

• speech development;
• perception of various surrounding objects, shapes, correct orientation in space;
• thinking;
• memory;
• visual activity;
• ability to serve oneself independently, their level;
• school learning skills;
• level of self-awareness and communication skills;
• attention.

Experts use the Bayley scale, Denver test and IQ as the main research methods. As additional tools, instrumental techniques MRI, CT and EEG are used.

Features of correction and treatment of mental retardation in childhood

In order for a preschooler suffering from mental retardation to catch up with the development of his peers, he needs to receive an accurate diagnosis in a timely manner and begin the treatment process. In order for a child with mental development disorders to have the opportunity to attend a normal rather than a correctional school, his parents must enlist the support of a psychologist, psychiatrist, speech therapist (and sometimes a psychotherapist), forming a common and unified team with them. For successful correction of mental retardation, an integrated approach is often used, using homeopathic and medicinal remedies.

The main burden in the treatment of mental retardation falls on the shoulders of the parents of a special child. The main emphasis is on correcting violations at the psychological and pedagogical level. The procedure helps improve emotional, communication and cognitive functions.

After symptoms of mental retardation are detected in children, treatment is prescribed by a doctor using complex methods. A speech therapist, psychologist, neurologist and defectologist work with the baby.

Sometimes psychocorrection does not work positive results, therefore, doctors recommend that in order to achieve a lasting result, psychocorrection is supported by drug therapy, the basis of which is nootropic drugs.

Correction of mental retardation with medications involves the use of the following medications:

• homeopathic medicines (including Cerebrum Compositum);
• antioxidant compounds (Cytoflavin, Mexidol);
• Glycine;
• Aminalon, Piracetam;
• Vitamins and vitamin complexes(Magne B6, Multivit, group B components);
• medicinal compositions with a general tonic effect (Lecithin, Cogitum).

How to prevent mental development problems

Good and effective prevention of childhood mental retardation is based on the early and comprehensive development of children. In general, medical experts advise the child’s parents to adhere to the following simple rules in order to prevent mental retardation.

• It is necessary to create optimal conditions for a woman’s successful pregnancy and childbirth.
• In the family where he grows up Small child, a favorable and friendly environment should be created.
• If the baby develops any diseases, they must be treated in a timely manner.
• From the first days after birth, the baby’s condition must be carefully monitored.
• From an early age, you need to constantly work with your baby, developing abilities and skills.

In the prevention of mental retardation in children, contact between mother and baby on an emotional and physical level is of great importance. The child will feel calm when his mother hugs and kisses him. Thanks to attention and care, the baby better navigates his new surroundings and learns to adequately perceive the world around him.

We hope that after reading this article, you will be able to recognize the symptoms of sexual retardation in children and begin treatment on time. If you found this article helpful, don't forget to rate it 5 stars below!

Working with children with mental retardation, I always reassure parents: “MDD is not the worst thing, with systematic training the child “levels out” and even reaches the norm, depending on what the cause of this pathology is.” For the most part, zepeer children are cute, very affectionate, and flexible. Working with them is a pleasure. We will talk about the causes of mental retardation in children and ways to solve the problem in this article.

What is mental retardation?

Doctors were the first to identify the problem of mental retardation. Mental retardation is characterized by a slow rate of maturation of mental and psychomotor functions and is reflected in the immaturity of the individual in the form of disturbances in the emotional-volitional sphere, as well as the cognitive abilities of the brain: memory, attention, thinking. The lag of children with mental retardation from their peers is manifested in the insufficient development of all mental operations: analysis, synthesis, generalization, classification, transfer, abstraction. But these violations are not severe, are compensatory in nature and have a reverse development.

A distinctive feature of children with mental retardation is their desire to have fun, their interests are unstable, their motives are vague, they love change in their activities, but at the same time they have an inadequate self-image and often consider themselves exceptional. Children with mental retardation have an unstable concentration of attention, low switchability and distribution, and therefore quickly get tired in class. They have difficulty solving verbal and logical problems, find it difficult to determine cause-and-effect relationships, often confuse concepts, for example, seasons with months, and are unable to identify the essential features of objects and phenomena, which affects the development of elementary ideas about them. Children's play activity is characterized by their inability to independently organize an extensive game without the help of an adult. Children in this category are often impulsive, hyperactive, anxious, aggressive, and have difficulty learning at school. At the same time, mental retardation was called “mental infantilism.” », which is defined as an age-inappropriate immature mental and physical status.

ZPR can act as both a primary and secondary defect against the background of a speech disorder, for example. The structure of the mental retardation defect may include attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as well as cerebrasthenic and psychoorganic syndrome. These syndromes can appear either separately or in combination with each other.

Causes of mental retardation

The dynamics of mental retardation are different and depend on many factors. The causes of mental retardation are usually divided into two: large groups. The first group is organic or hereditary in nature, the second is caused by social factors, pedagogical neglect and emotional deprivation.

The first group, polygenic causes, are caused by local lesions of brain areas during intrauterine development. This is due to infectious, somatic and toxic diseases of the mother, and can also be a consequence of fetal asphyxia or trauma in the natal or postnatal period. A genetic predisposition cannot be ruled out, which may cause a primary delay in the maturation of brain systems. 50-92% of such children have neurological symptoms; there are cases with signs of hydrocephalus, vegetative-vascular dystonia, and impaired cranial innervation. These signs can be identified on the EEG, where the absence of alpha rhythm and flashes of delta waves is clearly visible. In addition, a number of encephalopathic symptoms have been identified that are caused by organic brain damage and entail minimal cerebral dysfunction (MCD).

A primary delay in the development of brain areas can lead to a secondary one, which is associated with a deficiency of certain cognitive functions, such as memory, speech activity, purposefulness of action, volume and concentration of attention.

The second group of reasons of social origin indicates that the child did not have enough incentives for development: emotional and maternal deprivation, nutritional disorders and child care systems from early childhood. Important social reasons include pedagogical neglect, that is, the child was not given due attention in mastering any skill. Pedagogical neglect also has its reasons: alcoholism of parents, early orphanhood, conflict, instability in the family, authoritarian regime, lack of communication with others, mild mental disorders in parents, closed children's institution. IN Lately One of the factors of pedagogical neglect is the negative impact of the school education system and teachers. Any pedagogical influence that does not take into account the individual characteristics of children can become a direct cause of mental retardation.

Often, mental retardation is formed under the influence of both biological and social factors. A child with MMD finds himself in an unfavorable environment, under the influence of improper upbringing in the family and school, begins to lag behind in development, and is unable to master the school curriculum. As a result, not only do they suffer cognitive processes, but also the psyche. Any psychotraumatic social factor leads an already sick child to developmental delays. The combination of two groups of reasons makes it impossible to eliminate mental retardation as the child ages, and as a consequence, his social maladjustment occurs.

Types of ZPR

Based on the causes of mental retardation, several types are distinguished:

Delayed mental development of constitutional origin. Children in this category are distinguished by simultaneous immaturity of physical (small height and weight) and mental development, they are infantile, and attract attention from the first days at school with their curiosity about what is happening. They make friends quite quickly and are respected and loved because of their meek and accommodating disposition. Such a child is generally always in a positive mood, he is affectionate and friendly. He is usually restless in class, talks a lot, cannot concentrate, is constantly late, and is disorganized, so his academic performance suffers. Due to the immaturity of mental operations, children have a small amount of knowledge about the environment.

Mental retardation of somatogenic origin. Children in this group are born healthy, without hereditary pathologies. Mental retardation occurs as a result of illnesses and injuries in early childhood, which affect the development of brain functions. Minimal brain dysfunction leads to a state of mental infantilism and asthenia with sufficient preservation of intelligence. These children have difficulty adapting to school, constantly whine, miss their parents, are helpless, lack of initiative, inactive, passive, they lack motivation to learn, get tired quickly, refuse to answer questions, and are disorganized. Their actions are often ridiculous, they often get sick, miss classes, refuse to work, are critical of difficulties and failure, as a result of which they experience failures very deeply.

Mental retardation of psychogenic origin. The children are healthy and have normal physical development. The structure of their violation is associated with a socio-psychological factor, for example, children raised in an orphanage, or in a dysfunctional family in a situation of neglect. First of all, their emotional sphere suffers, without maternal warmth and with monotony social contacts there is a delay in mental development and, as a consequence, intellectual development. The social situation is a psychotraumatic factor leading to pedagogical neglect. These children are also infantile, highly anxious, passive, dependent, and downtrodden. They have underdeveloped analytical activity; they do not differentiate between good and bad, existing and non-existent. Intellect is impaired lexicon scant, no generalizations. The behavior shows increased aggressiveness, individualism, biased judgments, and in some cases, on the contrary, opportunism and humility.

Delayed mental development of cerebral-organic origin. In this case, mental retardation is associated with local organic changes in the brain due to pathology during pregnancy, birth trauma, or infectious diseases in the first year of life. Such children have cerebral insufficiency and asthenia, leading to a decrease in performance, memory, and concentration, which leads to failure at school by the end of the first year of study. Children are characterized by primitive thinking, reduced emotional reactions, lack of independence, increased suggestibility, decreased motivation and satiety, do not know how to build relationships with others, and do not correlate the concepts of “want” and “need.” Such children are either overly excitable, which causes frequent conflicts, aggression, irritability, assault, or inhibited, as a result of which they are passive, lethargic, whiny, slow, anxious and fearful.

Education of children with mental retardation

Correction of mental retardation is associated primarily with age stages. The sooner a form of developmental delay is identified and work begins to eliminate mental disorders, the better. The age factor can change the nature and dynamics of the disease, mitigating its manifestations. Also at the stage of correctional and developmental work, it is important to know the cause of mental retardation. If the reason is pedagogical neglect or another social factor, then with systematic sessions with a psychologist and defectologist, it is possible to completely eliminate mental retardation and bring the child to normal.

Knowing the type of delay is of great importance in correcting mental retardation. So, the prognosis for constitutional ZPR is favorable. If the pedagogical influence is provided competently and purposefully, in a way accessible to the child game form, since in children with mental retardation problems visual-effective thinking is developed much better than visual-figurative thinking, then there will be no trace of the problem. Early education of these children with an emphasis on the development of cognitive functions: memory, attention, logical and abstract thinking, can completely solve the problem of developmental delay.

Particular attention is paid not only to the physical development of the child, but also to his psychological development. Children with mental retardation (mental development delay) are placed in a separate category, which has its own development and characteristics. Training with these children is initially intense and challenging. However, after some work, progress is visible.

It is quite difficult to determine whether a child is developing normally. Typically, developmental disabilities are identified by teachers who know what children should be like at one or another stage of their development. Parents often fail to identify mental retardation. This causes the child’s socialization to slow down. However, this process is reversible.

By paying close attention to their child, parents are able to identify mental retardation. For example, such a baby begins to sit up, walk, and talk late. If he starts some activity, he cannot concentrate on it, does not know where to start, how to achieve the goal, etc. The child is quite impulsive: before he thinks, he will do it first.

If a delay in mental development has been identified, then you should contact a specialist. For longer-term work, you will need an in-person consultation.

Who are children with mental retardation?

Let's start by considering the concept of who children with mental retardation are. These are children of primary school age who are to some extent lagging behind in their mental development. In fact, psychologists don't make a big deal out of this. At any stage a delay may occur. The main thing remains only its timely detection and treatment.

Children with mental retardation differ from their peers in that they do not seem to have grown up to their age. They can play games like younger children. They are not inclined to mental intellectual work. We have to talk about mental retardation only when the condition is identified in a primary school student. If mental retardation was noted in a senior schoolchild, then we may be talking about infantilism or mental retardation.

Mental retardation is not associated with manifestations such as mental retardation or mental retardation. With mental retardation, difficulties in the child’s socialization are usually identified and educational activities. Otherwise, he can be the same child as other children.

It is necessary to distinguish between mental retardation and mental retardation:

• Children with mental retardation have the opportunity to catch up mental development compared to peers: thinking, analysis and synthesis, comparison, etc.
• In children with mental retardation, the prerequisites for intellectual activity are affected, and in children with mental retardation, thought processes are affected.
• The development of children with mental retardation occurs in leaps and bounds. In children with mental retardation, development may not occur at all.
• Children with mental retardation actively accept help from other people, they enter into dialogues and joint activities. Children with mental retardation avoid strangers and even loved ones.
• Children with mental retardation are more emotional in play activities than children with mental retardation.
• Children with mental retardation may have creative abilities. Children with mental retardation often get stuck at drawing lines and other things until they are taught something.

It is necessary to distinguish difficult children from children with mental retardation. In many ways, they are similar to each other: conflict, deviation in behavior, deceit, neglect, evasion of requirements. However, difficult children are the result of improper upbringing and pedagogical incompetence. They take an oppositional line against the conditions in which they grow.

Children with mental retardation resort to lies, refusal, and conflict as a way to protect their psyche. Their adaptation processes to society are simply disrupted.

Development of children with mental retardation

50% of schoolchildren who are unsuccessful in their studies are children with mental retardation. The way their development occurred influences further educational activities. Typically, children with mental retardation are identified in the first years after admission to school. kindergarten or school. They are more immature, their mental processes are impaired, and there is a cognitive disorder. Mild intellectual disability and immaturity of the nervous system are also notable.

To make it easy for children with mental retardation to develop to their level, specialized schools and classes are being opened. In such groups, the child receives an education that helps him catch up with the level of his “mentally healthy” peers, while correcting deficiencies in mental activity.

The teacher actively participates in the process and gradually transfers the initiative to the child. First, the teacher manages the process, then sets a goal and creates such a mood in the child that he himself solves the tasks. It also uses tasks for working with a team, where the child will do work with other children and focus on collective assessment.

The tasks are varied. They include more visual material that the child will be forced to work with. Outdoor games are also used.

Characteristics of children with mental retardation

Children with mental retardation are usually identified in the first period after they enter school. It has its own norms and rules that a child with this disorder simply cannot learn and follow. The main characteristic of a child with mental retardation is his unpreparedness to study in a regular school.

He does not have enough knowledge and skills that would help him learn new material and learn the rules adopted at school. It is difficult for him to perform voluntary activities. Difficulties arise already at the first stage of mastering writing, reading and counting. All this is aggravated by a weak nervous system.

The speech of children with mental retardation also lags behind. It is difficult for kids to write a coherent story. It is easier for them to compose separate sentences that are not related to each other. Agrammatism is often observed. Speech is sluggish, the articulatory apparatus is undeveloped.

Children with mental retardation are more inclined to play than to learn. They happily complete game tasks, but with the exception of role-playing tasks. At the same time, children with mental retardation have difficulties in building relationships with peers. They are distinguished by their directness, naivety and lack of independence.

There is no need to talk about purposeful activity. A child with mental retardation does not understand the goals of his studies and is unable to organize himself; he does not feel like a schoolchild. It is difficult for a child to understand the material that comes from the teacher’s lips. It is also difficult for him to assimilate it. To understand, he needs visual material and detailed instructions.

By themselves, children with mental retardation quickly get tired and have a low level of performance. They cannot get into the same pace as in a regular school. Over time, the child himself understands his dissimilarity, which can lead to insolvency, uncertainty about his own potential, and the emergence of fears of punishment.

A child with mental retardation is incurious and has a low level of inquisitiveness. He does not see logical connections, often misses the significant and focuses on the insignificant. Topics are not related to each other when talking with such a child. These characteristics lead to superficial memory of the material. The child is not able to understand the essence of things, but only notes what first caught his eye or appeared on the surface. This leads to a lack of generalization and the presence of stereotypical use of the material.

There are difficulties in relationships with other people in children with mental retardation. They don't ask questions because they don't have curiosity. It is difficult to make contact with children and adults. All this is reinforced by emotional instability, which manifests itself in:

1. Mannering.
2. Uncertainty.
3. Aggressive behavior.
4. Lack of self-control.
5. Variability of mood.
6. Inability to adapt to the team.
7. Familiarity.

Children with mental retardation manifest themselves in maladaptation to the world around them, which requires correction.

Working with children with mental retardation

Correctional work with children with mental retardation is carried out by specialists who take into account the characteristics of such children. Their work is aimed at correcting all shortcomings and promoting children to the level of their peers. They learn the same material as healthy children, while their characteristics are taken into account.

Work is being carried out in two directions:

1. Teaching the basic material taught at school.
2. Correction of all mental deficiencies.

The age of the child with mental retardation is taken into account. What mental characteristics he must possess, such people develop in him. This takes into account the complexity of the tasks that the child can perform on his own, and the exercises that he can solve with the help of adults.

Correctional work with children with mental retardation includes a health-improving direction, when favorable conditions for development are created. Here the daily routine, environment, conditions, etc. change. At the same time, neuropsychological techniques are used that correct the child’s behavior, his learning ability in writing and reading. Other areas of correctional activity are the development of the cognitive sphere (its stimulation) and the development of the emotional part (understanding the feelings of other people, controlling one’s own emotions, etc.).

Working with children with mental retardation in various areas makes it possible to correct their mental activity and raise it to the level of ordinary healthy individuals of their age.

Education of children with mental retardation

Specialists, not regular teachers, work with children with mental retardation. This is due to the fact that the regular school curriculum, with its intensity and approaches, is not suitable for these children. Their intellectual sphere is not so developed as to easily receive new knowledge; it is difficult for them to organize their activities, generalize and compare, analyze and synthesize. However, children with mental retardation are able to repeat, transferring actions to similar tasks. This helps them learn and gain the knowledge that their peers receive in a regular school.

Teachers take into account the characteristics of children with mental retardation and learning objectives that schoolchildren must learn. First of all, the emphasis is on the development of cognitive abilities.

Ideally, parents will begin to correct the mental activity of their children in the preschool period. There are numerous preschool organizations where there are specialists in the development of various skills, for example, speech pathologists. This helps to quickly compensate for the gaps that have formed.

Children with mental retardation can reach the level of development of their peers if they receive diverse and versatile material that not only gives them knowledge, but also teaches them writing, reading, speaking (pronunciation), etc.

Bottom line

Children with mental retardation are not sick, but specialists should deal with their correction. Usually, developmental delay is detected late, which is due to the inattention of parents to their own children. However, if a mental retardation is identified, you can immediately begin specialized work that will help the child with socialization and adaptation to life.

The prognosis for mental retardation is positive if parents place their child in the hands of specialists. It is possible to quickly and easily eliminate all mental gaps that have been identified, which distinguishes this group of children from children with mental retardation.

In a broad sense, mental retardation in children is immaturity of the emotional-volitional sphere in children. With timely treatment, this pathology can be cured completely or partially.

The key factors are the degree of progression of the disease and the reasons for its manifestation. Treatment of the disease includes taking certain medications, classes with specialized specialists and special medical procedures . We will talk about the symptoms and treatment of mental retardation in children in the article.

Concept and characteristics

IN medical practice the term ZPR denotes tempo development of mental processes lag The child has.

The occurring violations are reversible. In such children, gaming preferences have prevailed for a long time; their thinking is characterized by specific immaturity and lack of basic knowledge.

Compared with their peers, children with mental retardation have limited ideas and low level of intellectual activity.

What is it caused by?

The causes of mental retardation include numerous factors that pose a threat to the emotional and volitional development of the child. Such a danger may arise against the background of heredity, complications during pregnancy, difficult childbirth and individual characteristics of the child’s body.

External factors can provoke mental retardation in a child only if there are internal prerequisites.

Environmental impact in in this case becomes the reason for the progression of the pathology and an increase in the intensity of its symptoms.

Causes of delayed neuropsychic development in a child the following factors may be involved:

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Classification and types

The classification of mental retardation in children is carried out depending on the reasons that provoked this pathology. In pediatrics, four types of the disease are most common.

Each of its forms has its own characteristic features and is a key factor for determining the complex of therapeutic actions. Prognosis for different forms of mental retardation differs.

In most cases, the disorders are reversible, but an exception may be a pathology that arises against the background of genetic prerequisites.

The main classification of mental retardation in children:

ZPRD with elements of autism

Delayed psycho-speech development in children may be accompanied by elements of autism. This combination of pathologies is a complication of mental retardation and requires special treatment methods.

In this case, the danger of ZPRR becomes development. In medical practice, there are no effective methods of treating this pathology. It is impossible to completely cure autism.

The risk of developing autism is indicated by the following: additional symptoms with ZPRR:

• poor facial expressions;
• lack of interest in the outside world;
• constantly performing actions that have no meaning;
• partial or complete lack of speech;
• abnormal speech.

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Complications and consequences

With mental retardation, there is a risk of impaired speech development of the child.

The consequences of a combination of such pathologies can be dysgraphia or dyslexia.

The progression of these conditions can result in critical low level performance at school.

Adapt to society It is extremely difficult for children with mental retardation. Attempts by peers to find an approach to them will provoke not only the child’s isolation, but also attacks of aggression.

Complications The following conditions may occur:

• development of complex mental disorders;
• significant impairment of basic skills;
• serious problems with social adaptation;
• development concomitant diseases(ZPRR, ZRR, etc.).

How to identify?

The symptoms of mental retardation in a child are clearly manifested by age five or six.

Such children differ significantly from their peers in terms of their skills and some behavioral traits.

For example, basic actions are difficult for them(tying shoelaces, dressing independently, eating, etc.). The clinical picture is complemented by deviations of psycho-emotional disorders.

Symptoms ZPR in most cases are the following factors:

Characteristic qualities

When mental development is delayed, the intellect in children is practically not impaired, but serious deviations in the process of perceiving certain information.

It is difficult for a child with this diagnosis to remember educational material and analyze it. Perception in such children is fragmentary.

Children with mental retardation are characterized by the following qualities:

Diagnostic methods

The diagnosis of mental retardation can be made in children who have reached the age of four. In most cases, this pathology is identified in preschool children.

An alarming signal is the child’s poor performance at school and difficulties in mastering educational material.

Diagnosis confirmed comprehensive examination children and the conclusion of a special commission (PMPC).

Diagnostics carried out using the following methods:

• examination by specialized specialists (speech therapist, child psychologist, neurologist, pediatrician, psychiatrist, etc.);
• neuropsychological testing;
• research of intellectual processes;
• MRI of the brain;
• CT and EEG;
• mandatory differential diagnosis with autism and mental retardation.

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Treatment and correction

Treatment methods for mental retardation are always prescribed in accordance with individual clinical picture child's health status.

Children with such a diagnosis should receive help not only from psychologists and teachers, but also from their parents.

Drug therapy is used only in the absence of results other techniques or a delayed tendency to recovery.

Microcurrent reflexology

The use of microcurrent reflexology in the treatment of mental retardation in children shows good results and an acceleration of the tendency towards recovery. The essence of this procedure is to influence certain areas of the brain ultra-small electrical impulses.

With timely use of this technique, damaged functions of the central nervous system are restored. The procedure is allowed for children from six months of age.

Classes with a defectologist and speech therapist

Conducting classes with a speech therapist and defectologist are among the mandatory methods treatment of mental retardation in children. Exercises and educational material are selected for each child individually.

Speech therapists can additionally use the technique acupressure(on the tip of the nose, between the eyes, in the center of the chin, in the corners of the lips and under ears There is a slight effect of massage movements).

In most cases, the need for training with such specialists arises when the child reaches the age of five.

Target speech therapy and defectology classes:

• development of the child's memory;
• improvement of motor skills;
• normalization of articulation;
• improvement of adaptive qualities;
• elimination;
• improved thinking.

Drug therapy

The need to use drug therapy for mental retardation can only be determined by neurologist or neuropathologist.

Apply medications primarily to restore certain functions of the child’s brain and nervous system.

You should never take such medications on your own.. For drug therapy there must be certain reasons identified through a comprehensive examination of the baby and special procedures for studying his central nervous system and parts of the brain.

For mental retardation in children, the following medications can be used:

• nootropics (Piracetam, Cortexin);
• vitamin complexes appropriate for the child’s age.

Family atmosphere plays a key role in the treatment of mental retardation The child has. Children with this diagnosis require a special approach.

The tendency towards recovery and the effectiveness of the correction methods being carried out largely depend on the behavior of the parents. Adults need to remember that they will have to constantly work with the child (even during games and communication).

When raising children with mental retardation, it is important to consider the following: recommendations:

1. Can speed up the child’s treatment process dolphin therapy and hippotherapy(horses and dolphins are believed to help children significantly normalize their mental state).
2. You always need a child praise for successes and encourage him (parental support will give him self-confidence and help him develop adaptive skills).
3. If it is difficult for your child to perform basic actions (for example, tying shoelaces, fastening buttons, etc.), in no case you can’t criticize him or punish him or left unattended (training must be carried out gradually).
4. Quarrels between family members nervous breakdowns on the child and other negative factors should be excluded.
5. With a child you need to do as much as possible communicate more(you should try to discuss with your baby everything that surrounds him).
6. During games or walks, the child should be presented with important information in a playful form (description of flora, fauna, surrounding objects, why they are needed, etc.).
7. Not worth it set challenging tasks for the child (parents should take into account that the reason for the child’s lack of certain skills is not laziness, but existing pathology).

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Where to get treatment in Russia?

If there are complications, lack of treatment results, or certain medical indications, the child may be prescribed specialized treatment for mental retardation.

In medical practice in last years Surgical methods to correct the disease began to be widely used. In Russia, clinics offering a range of procedures to eliminate mental retardation are mainly located in Moscow.

Examples of metropolitan clinics treating mental retardation in children:

• Clinic of Restorative Neurology;
• Medicor Plus;
• Alexandria.

Forecasts

With timely and correct treatment, mental retardation in children is significantly reduces its intensity.

If the pathology is accompanied by complications, then it becomes necessary to place the child in a specialized school or correctional classes. The general curriculum will be too difficult for him.

In addition, you should not stop exercising even if there are trends towards improving your health. The disease has a high risk of regression.

At correct and timely treatment The following factors are likely:

• the child adapts well among his peers;
• the functions of the brain and nervous system are largely restored;
• certain talents develop (musical, choreographic, etc.);
• the diagnosis does not interfere with obtaining a higher education and achieving success in professional activities.

Is it possible to prevent the disease?

It is recommended to engage in the prevention of mental retardation at the stage of pregnancy planning. If parents have identified pathologies that increase the risk of mental retardation in the child, then first of all it is necessary to reduce their manifestation as much as possible.

Doctors note that mental formation declines in children by the age of eight. If the disease is not diagnosed before this period, the risk of its development is minimal.

Preventive measures for mental retardation include the following: recommendations:

• attentive attitude of parents to the planning stage of the child;
• preventing exposure of the fetus to any adverse factors;
• prevention and timely treatment somatic and infectious diseases in children from a very early age;
• if a child is suspected of having a mental retardation, it is necessary to undergo examination as soon as possible;
• providing favorable conditions for raising a child.

If a child has any symptoms of mental retardation, it is necessary carry out his examination as soon as possible in a medical facility.

If the diagnosis is confirmed, then therapy should be started immediately. Early detection pathology and the correct approach to its treatment increase the chances of a favorable trend and good prognosis.

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We kindly ask you not to self-medicate. Make an appointment with a doctor!