TY - JOUR
T1 - Developmental regression in children
T2 - Current and future directions
AU - Furley, Kirsten
AU - Mehra, Chirag
AU - Goin-Kochel, Robin P.
AU - Fahey, Michael C.
AU - Hunter, Matthew F.
AU - Williams, Katrina
AU - Absoud, Michael
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors thank the International Society for Autism Research for supporting the development of an international special interest group dedicated to developmental regression. We also thank Professor Baird for her comments on reviewing the manuscript.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Author(s)
PY - 2023/12
Y1 - 2023/12
N2 - Developmental regression describes when a child loses previously established skills, such as the ability to speak words and is most recognised in neurodevelopmental conditions including Autism; Developmental Epileptic Encephalopathies, such as Landau Kleffner syndrome, and genetic conditions such as Rett syndrome and Phelan McDermid syndrome. Although studies have reported developmental regression for over 100 years, there remain significant knowledge gaps within and between conditions that feature developmental regression. The certainty of evidence from earlier work has been limited by condition-specific studies, retrospective methodology, and inconsistency in the definitions and measures used for classification. Given prior limitations in the field, there is a paucity of knowledge about neurocognitive mechanisms, trajectories and outcomes for children with developmental regression, and their families. Here we provide a comprehensive overview, synthesise key definitions, clinical measures, and aetiological clues associated with developmental regression and discuss impacts on caregiver physical and mental health to clarify challenges and highlight future directions in the field.
AB - Developmental regression describes when a child loses previously established skills, such as the ability to speak words and is most recognised in neurodevelopmental conditions including Autism; Developmental Epileptic Encephalopathies, such as Landau Kleffner syndrome, and genetic conditions such as Rett syndrome and Phelan McDermid syndrome. Although studies have reported developmental regression for over 100 years, there remain significant knowledge gaps within and between conditions that feature developmental regression. The certainty of evidence from earlier work has been limited by condition-specific studies, retrospective methodology, and inconsistency in the definitions and measures used for classification. Given prior limitations in the field, there is a paucity of knowledge about neurocognitive mechanisms, trajectories and outcomes for children with developmental regression, and their families. Here we provide a comprehensive overview, synthesise key definitions, clinical measures, and aetiological clues associated with developmental regression and discuss impacts on caregiver physical and mental health to clarify challenges and highlight future directions in the field.
KW - Autistic regression
KW - Childhood disintegrative disorder
KW - Developmental regression
KW - Loss of skills
KW - Skills loss
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85173708050&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.cortex.2023.09.001
DO - 10.1016/j.cortex.2023.09.001
M3 - Review article
C2 - 37839389
AN - SCOPUS:85173708050
SN - 0010-9452
VL - 169
SP - 5
EP - 17
JO - Cortex
JF - Cortex
ER -
