This systematic review set out to look at the efficacy of atypical antipsychotic medication, also known as second generation antipsychotics, commonly used in the treatment of schizophrenia. There continues to be debate around whether these second-generation medications are safer or more effective than typical antipsychotics as they still can produce severe side effects. Other posts [read the full story…]
The authors of this study were interested to explore the barriers that might exist to enabling children with Down syndrome to do the recommended amount of daily physical activity. They were also interested to explore what might be facilitators to physical activity for this group. They carried out in-depth interviews with 20 parents (16 mothers, [read the full story…]
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) have commissioned the National Collaborating Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health to produce a new guideline on the recognition, referral and diagnosis of children and young people on the autism spectrum. The guideline is aimed at GPs, paediatricians, psychiatrists, psychologists, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists [read the full story…]
There is very little available in the literature that focuses on the perspectives of families caring for someone with severe or profound learning disabilities and challenging behaviour. This ethnographic study aimed to improve understanding of the experiences and perspectives of families, in particular mothers, of young people with these complex needs. The researcher carried out [read the full story…]
The authors of this review of the literature set out to look at the assumptions held about the impact of short breaks on family carers and disabled children. 60 articles or reports were identified for inclusion in the review, the vast majority being cross-sectional studies. The reviewers found eight studies using quasi-experimental pre-post designs or [read the full story…]
Communication is a fundamental human right, at the heart of how we interact with our environment, express choices and build relationships. People with learning disabilities often have difficulties with verbal communication and this study set out to look at the extent to which children with learning disabilities depended on manual signs during the process of [read the full story…]
This systematic review of prevalence rates of chronic health conditions in children with intellectual disability found 2,994 relevant studies published between 1996 to 2008. 31 studies were included that the authors felt had sufficient methodological quality. They found that the 6 most prevalent chronic health conditions were: Epilepsy (22.0/100), Cerebral palsy (19.8/100), Anxiety disorder (17.1/100), [read the full story…]
