Parental Questions About Developmental Coordination Disorder: a Synopsis of Current Evidence

missiuna_9757.qxd 10/6/2006 3:40 PM Page 507 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Parental questions about developmental coordination disorder: A synopsis of current evidence Cheryl Missiuna PhD OTReg(Ont)1, Robin Gaines PhD SLP(C) CASLPO CCC-SLP2, Helen Soucie PhD3, Jennifer McLean MD FRCPC4 C Missiuna, R Gaines, H Soucie, J McLean. Parental questions Les questions des parents sur le trouble de about developmental coordination disorder: A synopsis of l’acquisition de la coordination : Un synopsis current evidence. Paediatr Child Health 2006;11(8):507-512. des données probantes courantes In recent years, knowledge about developmental coordination disorder (DCD) has accumulated very rapidly. Considerable progress has Ces dernières années, les connaissances sur le trouble de l’acquisition de la coordination (TAC) se sont accumulées très rapidement. Des progrès been made in the understanding of DCD, but recent studies have not considérables ont été réalisés dans la compréhension du TAC, mais les been compiled in a way that makes them easily accessible to practic- études récentes n’ont pas été compilées de manière à les rendre facilement ing paediatricians. In the present paper, the literature is reviewed and accessibles aux pédiatres en exercice. Dans le présent article, on analyse organized around the questions commonly raised by parents of chil- les publications et on les organise selon les questions que posent souvent dren with DCD when they meet with their paediatrician. Parents les parents d’enfants atteints d’un TAC lorsqu’ils rencontrent leur express concern and seek information about their child’s movement pédiatre. Les parents sont préoccupés et cherchent à obtenir de difficulties. They want to know what causes their child’s lack of coor- l’information sur les difficultés de mouvement de leur enfant. Ils désirent dination and whether DCD is the correct diagnosis. Are other devel- connaître la cause du manque de coordination de leur enfant et s’assurer opmental disorders involved? What can they do to help their child’s que le TAC constitue bien le bon diagnostic. D’autres troubles du daily frustrations? The present review addresses frequently asked développement sont-ils en cause? Que peuvent-ils faire pour atténuer les questions through a critical appraisal of current research literature. frustrations quotidiennes de leur enfant? La présente analyse aborde les Paediatricians who are familiar with the research evidence will be questions souvent posées d’après une évaluation critique des publications better able to recognize these children and to share information with courantes en recherche. Les pédiatres familiers avec les données parents. probantes de la recherche dépisteront mieux ces enfants et partageront l’information avec les parents. Key Words: Children; Developmental coordination disorder; Movement skill difficulties; Parents ince the early 1900s, the scientific community has consensus meeting and agreed to accept the term DCD to Sacknowledged a large group of children with move- classify these children (5). ment skill difficulties who have not been diagnosed with a Parents of young children with DCD search for answers general medical condition (1). This difficulty in motor from a multitude of health care professionals (6). They skill competence, observed in children who are develop- want to know what is ‘wrong with their child’ (7) and are ing well intellectually, is termed ‘developmental coordina- not sure with whom they should be discussing their child’s tion disorder’ (DCD). DCD is a recognized syndrome that movement problems. They ask about the causes of these was described by the World Health Organization in 1992 movement difficulties, and because the disorder is not well (2) and has been included in the diagnostic manuals of known or well understood, they ask about possible diag- the American Psychiatric Association since 1989 (3). noses. Do all children with DCD experience similar diffi- Historically, children with DCD have been called ‘clumsy’ culties? Are there associated developmental disorders or ‘physically awkward’ or were diagnosed with ‘develop- involved in their child’s movement difficulties? Do chil- mental dyspraxia’ (4). In 1994, researchers and clinicians dren ‘grow out’ of this problem? What should they, as parents, from around the world gathered at an international be doing? 1School of Rehabilitation Science and the Centre for Childhood Disability Research, McMaster University, Hamilton; 2Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Ottawa; 3Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario; 4Department of Pediatrics, IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia Correspondence: Dr Cheryl Missiuna, McMaster University, School of Rehabilitation Science, 1400 Main Street West IAHS 414, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 1C7. Telephone 905-525-9140 ext 27842, fax 905-524-0069, e-mail [email protected] Paediatr Child Health Vol 11 No 8 October 2006 ©2006 Pulsus Group Inc. All rights reserved 507 missiuna_9757.qxd 10/6/2006 3:40 PM Page 508 Missiuna et al TABLE 1 How do I know whether my child has DCD? Summary of diagnostic criteria for developmental If a child has a significant and persistent motor impairment coordination disorder that interferes with academic achievement or activities of A. Performance in daily activities that require motor coordination is daily living (3), and once other medical explanations have substantially below that expected, given the person’s chronological age and measured intelligence. This may be manifested by: been ruled out, then a diagnosis of DCD should be consid- • marked delays in achieving motor milestones (eg, walking, ered. These difficulties can be characterized by clumsiness crawling, sitting) (or lack of coordination) in a range of manipulative tasks, • dropping things difficulties with sports or playground activities, difficulties • clumsiness in learning and retaining new motor skills, and frustration • poor performance in sports or a lack of desire to engage in physical activity (6,22,23). It • poor handwriting is actually quite easy to pick out a DCD child in the play- B. The disturbance in criterion A significantly interferes with academic ground (24,25) when one compares the child with their achievement or activities of daily living. typically developing peers. Today, the most commonly used C. The disturbance is not due to a general medical condition (eg, cerebral tests of motor impairment are the Movement Assessment palsy, hemiplegia or muscular dystrophy) and does not meet criteria Battery for Children (26) and the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test for a pervasive developmental disorder. of Motor Proficiency (27). These tests have strong psycho- D. If mental retardation is present, the motor difficulties are in excess of metric properties and are usually administered by an occu- those usually associated with it. pational or physical therapist to provide information about Data from reference 3 the extent of a child’s motor delay relative to their peers. Parents are a rich source of information about their In the past 10 years, research and knowledge about DCD child’s difficulties (7,28). Paediatricians can ask the child’s has progressed and accumulated rapidly (1,8). Key studies parents a specific series of questions to draw out movement published in the past five to 10 years are cited in the pres- difficulty experiences (29). In addition to integrating the ent article to offer paediatricians empirical evidence that information received from motor assessments and parent can be used to answer the questions posed by concerned interviews, a critical role of the paediatrician is to perform a parents (see Appendix). physical and neurological examination to rule out other possible causes of motor incoordination (see Appendix) What is DCD? (29). Hamilton (30) has outlined an excellent review of A child is considered to have DCD when he or she lacks this process. the motor coordination necessary to perform tasks that are appropriate for his or her intellectual ability, in the absence What causes DCD? of other neurological disorders (Table 1) (3). Estimates of Despite numerous theories about the etiology of DCD, it is the prevalence of DCD range from 5% to 15% in the pri- not yet possible to offer a definitive answer about causality mary school population (9), and it is agreed that, at a min- (31). In the past, DCD was described using terms such as imum, 5% to 6% of all children are affected (3). DCD ‘minor brain damage’, implying that minor neurological coexists with other associated learning (10), language (11), dysfunction was the cause of the child’s movement difficul- and behavioural and/or social (12) difficulties. Emotional ties (32). Ayres (33) suggested that difficulties arise from a and social problems such as low self-esteem and poor social ‘sensory integrative dysfunction’, whereby the child is acceptance are often reported to co-occur (13). Anxiety unable to integrate sensory or perceptual-motor informa- and depression have also been noted, but it is not yet tion in order to produce skilled movements. The term known whether these conditions are secondary to social ‘developmental dyspraxia’ has been also been used (34) to isolation and low self-worth (14). describe a common symptom of DCD, although this does not reflect causality. Why is my child clumsy? Several hypotheses have been proposed and investigated Children with DCD demonstrate significant difficulty with to explain DCD; however, the evidence to date

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