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Causes

Treatment

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Global developmental delay (GDD), sometimes referred to as global developmental disorder, is aneurodevelopmental diagnosisin the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). GDD is a form ofintellectual disability, which is diagnosed when an individual under age five exhibits clear signs of a developmental delay but cannot be evaluated for a more specific diagnosis due to their age.

For an individual to meet the criteria for GDD, they must experience delays in achieving milestones in several areas of intellectual functioning and learning. A provider will re-evaluate someone with a diagnosis of GDD as they get older to obtain a more specific and accurate diagnosis.

Developmental Disabilities: Types, Causes, Coping

Characteristics of Global Developmental Disorder

According to the DSM-5, “Global developmental delay, as its name implies, is diagnosed when an individual fails to meet expected developmental milestones in several areas of intellectual functioning.”

GDD does not have a specific set of symptoms like other DSM diagnoses but instead refers to general delays that cannot be more specifically identified at the time of the assessment.

Symptoms of GDD can include, but are not limited to:

Types of Communication Disorders

Identifying and Diagnosing Global Developmental Disorder

Some IQ tests can evaluate children younger than six, but long-term research shows that these scores do not accurately predict future learning prior to age six.

Providers can identify developmental delays in many different ways, including:

Causes of Global Developmental Delay

Because GDD is a general term and not a specific diagnosis, many different things can cause a child to experience a delay with this label. Sometimes,geneticscan cause developmental delays. Other times, the environment can cause GDD, both before and after the child is born.

Treatment for Global Developmental Disorder

Sometimes, children outgrowdevelopmentaldelays and catch up to their peers with minimal intervention.However, many benefit from treatments and services to help them reach their full potential.

Treatments that can help with GDDs include:

As the child gets older, they will need re-assessment to gather more specific information about their delays and get more specific information about their diagnosis or diagnoses.

Support for Global Developmental Disorder

Some children diagnosed with GDD are able to catch up developmentally and will no longer meet the criteria for a developmental disorder as they get older. Others continue to experience mild, moderate, or severe difficulties throughout their lifetime.

Parents and caregivers whose child has a diagnosis of GDD can ask their treatment team questions they have about their child’s specific delays and what interventions might help them catch up. They may also benefit fromsupport groupswhere they can connect with other families going through similar situations.

Early intervention is important in helping children live their best lives. Understanding a child’s developmental delays and offering appropriate treatment can prevent future delays and allow them to catch up to their peers.

Understanding Developmental Psychology

5 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-5. 5th ed., American Psychiatric Association, 2013. DSM-V, doi-org.db29.linccweb.org/10.1176/ appiNational Research Center on the Gifted and Talented.Assessing and advocating for gifted students: Perspectives for school and clinical psychologists.Habibullah H, Albradie R, Bashir S.Identifying pattern in global developmental delay children: A retrospective study at King Fahad specialist hospital, Dammam (Saudi Arabia).Pediatr Rep. 2019;11(4):8251. Published 2019 Dec 2. doi:10.4081/pr.2019.8251Choo Y, Agarwal P, How C, Yeleswarapu S.Developmental delay: identification and management at primary care level.smedj. 2019;60(3):119-123.Mithyantha R, Kneen R, McCann E, Gladstone M.Current evidence-based recommendations on investigating children with global developmental delay.Archives of Disease in Childhood. 2017;102(11):1071-1076.

5 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-5. 5th ed., American Psychiatric Association, 2013. DSM-V, doi-org.db29.linccweb.org/10.1176/ appiNational Research Center on the Gifted and Talented.Assessing and advocating for gifted students: Perspectives for school and clinical psychologists.Habibullah H, Albradie R, Bashir S.Identifying pattern in global developmental delay children: A retrospective study at King Fahad specialist hospital, Dammam (Saudi Arabia).Pediatr Rep. 2019;11(4):8251. Published 2019 Dec 2. doi:10.4081/pr.2019.8251Choo Y, Agarwal P, How C, Yeleswarapu S.Developmental delay: identification and management at primary care level.smedj. 2019;60(3):119-123.Mithyantha R, Kneen R, McCann E, Gladstone M.Current evidence-based recommendations on investigating children with global developmental delay.Archives of Disease in Childhood. 2017;102(11):1071-1076.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-5. 5th ed., American Psychiatric Association, 2013. DSM-V, doi-org.db29.linccweb.org/10.1176/ appiNational Research Center on the Gifted and Talented.Assessing and advocating for gifted students: Perspectives for school and clinical psychologists.Habibullah H, Albradie R, Bashir S.Identifying pattern in global developmental delay children: A retrospective study at King Fahad specialist hospital, Dammam (Saudi Arabia).Pediatr Rep. 2019;11(4):8251. Published 2019 Dec 2. doi:10.4081/pr.2019.8251Choo Y, Agarwal P, How C, Yeleswarapu S.Developmental delay: identification and management at primary care level.smedj. 2019;60(3):119-123.Mithyantha R, Kneen R, McCann E, Gladstone M.Current evidence-based recommendations on investigating children with global developmental delay.Archives of Disease in Childhood. 2017;102(11):1071-1076.

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-5. 5th ed., American Psychiatric Association, 2013. DSM-V, doi-org.db29.linccweb.org/10.1176/ appi

National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented.Assessing and advocating for gifted students: Perspectives for school and clinical psychologists.

Habibullah H, Albradie R, Bashir S.Identifying pattern in global developmental delay children: A retrospective study at King Fahad specialist hospital, Dammam (Saudi Arabia).Pediatr Rep. 2019;11(4):8251. Published 2019 Dec 2. doi:10.4081/pr.2019.8251

Choo Y, Agarwal P, How C, Yeleswarapu S.Developmental delay: identification and management at primary care level.smedj. 2019;60(3):119-123.

Mithyantha R, Kneen R, McCann E, Gladstone M.Current evidence-based recommendations on investigating children with global developmental delay.Archives of Disease in Childhood. 2017;102(11):1071-1076.

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