Motormental retardation

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Overview

Treatment

Motormental retardation

Definition:

Motormental retardation is described as delayed or decreased development of both mental and motor skills.

Alternative Names:
Delayed motor and mental development; Retardation - motormental; Psychomotor retardation
Considerations:

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Motormental retardation in children is generally related to significant central nervous system damage or abnormality. The term refers specifically to delayed development of cognitive skills (like speech) and delayed development of motor skills (such as walking).

There can be various degrees of mental retardation, which include failure to meet certain normal developmental milestones.

Infants can be born with conditions that cause mental retardation and delayed or absent motor development. Motormental retardation may also develop AFTER birth with deterioration of both mental and motor function related to disease or accident.

Common Causes:

BEFORE BIRTH causes include:

asphyxia (insufficient oxygen before or during birth)
cerebral hemorrhage
congenital rubella syndrome
congenital toxoplasmosis
chromosomal abnormalities (excessive numbers or reduced numbers), such as trisomy 13, trisomy 18, trisomy 21 (Down syndrome)
abnormalities of the chromosome (with normal number of chromosomes), such as Fragile X syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, Angelman syndrome
Fetal alcohol syndrome

INFANCY/CHILDHOOD causes include:

infection -- meningitis and/or encephalitis (Organisms can include virus, bacteria, or parasites. Some infectious agents include: HIV infection, Herpes Simplex virus, toxoplasmosis, cytomegalovirus, listeria, H. influenza)
traumatic -- head injury, shaken-baby syndrome, asphyxia (such as near drowning)
non-genetic metabolic disorders -- kernicterus, hypoglycemia, Reye's syndrome, congenital hypothyroidism (untreated)
genetic metabolic disorders -- phenylketonuria (if untreated), histidinemia
intraventricular hemorrhage (as seen in very premature infants)
other heritable disorders -- Tay-Sachs disease, Aicardi syndrome, Niemann-Pick disease.
environmental or toxins -- lead poisoning, methyl mercury exposure (Minamata disease)