PS10.1,PS11.1 | Developmental Psychiatry — Glossary

The set of conceptual, social, and practical skills that individuals learn and use in everyday life; assessed by standardised instruments such as the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales; deficits in adaptive behaviour are a required diagnostic criterion for IDD

A neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by persistent, pervasive inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that is developmentally inappropriate, present before age 12, across two or more settings, and functionally impairing

The observational gold-standard instrument for ASD assessment; a structured play-based interaction administered by a trained clinician to assess social communication, play, and restricted/repetitive behaviour

A behavioural therapy approach forming the basis of early intensive behavioural intervention (EIBI) in ASD; uses structured reinforcement to develop communication, social, and adaptive skills

A neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction, combined with restricted/repetitive patterns of behaviour, present from the early developmental period

A selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI); second-line non-stimulant pharmacotherapy for ADHD, particularly useful when stimulants are contraindicated or when anxiety co-occurs

Communication methods (picture boards, speech-generating devices, sign language) used for individuals with limited verbal communication; particularly important in non-speaking children with ASD

A standardised observer-rated scale assessing autism severity across 15 domains; widely used in India as a screening and severity measure for ASD; score ≥30 suggests autism

Standardised multi-informant rating scales (parent and teacher versions) used to quantify ADHD symptom frequency and severity; widely used in clinical and research settings

Severe intellectual disability, growth retardation, and deafness resulting from profound iodine deficiency during fetal development, causing fetal hypothyroidism; preventable with universal iodine supplementation in pregnancy

The ICD-11 terminology for intellectual disability disorder, replacing the ICD-10 term 'mental retardation'; grouped under Section 06 Neurodevelopmental disorders

The most common chromosomal cause of intellectual disability, resulting from an extra copy of chromosome 21; associated with IDD (usually mild to moderate), distinctive facial features, congenital heart disease, hypothyroidism, and early-onset Alzheimer disease

Repetition of words or phrases spoken by others — either immediately (immediate echolalia) or after a delay (delayed echolalia); commonly observed in ASD and may be functional or non-functional

Higher-order cognitive processes including working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility; mediated by the prefrontal cortex and disrupted in ADHD

A range of conditions caused by prenatal alcohol exposure, including intellectual disability, growth deficiency, facial dysmorphia, and behavioural problems; one of the leading preventable causes of IDD globally

The most common inherited (single-gene) cause of intellectual disability; caused by CGG trinucleotide repeat expansion in the FMR1 gene on the X chromosome; predominantly affects males with IDD, macroorchidism, and often ASD features

A process by which individuals or families affected by a genetic condition receive information about diagnosis, inheritance, recurrence risks, and reproductive options; particularly important for families of children with chromosomal or monogenic causes of IDD

The dried blood spot neonatal screening test used to detect PKU and other metabolic conditions in newborns; allows early initiation of dietary therapy before irreversible intellectual damage occurs

A symptom domain of ADHD involving excessive motor activity (fidgeting, leaving seat), excessive talking, blurting out answers, and difficulty waiting turns

Brain injury resulting from perinatal asphyxia (oxygen deprivation and reduced cerebral blood flow around the time of birth); a major preventable cause of intellectual disability, cerebral palsy, and seizure disorder

A symptom domain of ADHD involving difficulty sustaining attention, frequent careless mistakes, apparent failure to listen, poor task organisation, and easy distractibility

A neurodevelopmental condition characterised by significant deficits in intellectual functioning AND adaptive behaviour, with onset during the developmental period; formerly termed mental retardation; classified as Disorders of intellectual development in ICD-11

General mental capacity including reasoning, problem solving, planning, abstract thinking, comprehension, and learning; measured by standardised individually administered IQ tests

A score derived from standardised intelligence tests, normed to a population mean of 100 and standard deviation of 15; an IQ approximately ≤70 (2 SD below the mean) represents the intellectual functioning threshold for IDD

The ability to share focus on an object or event with another person through pointing, gaze, or gesture; typically emerges by 9-12 months and is often reduced or absent in ASD

Bilirubin-induced neurological damage in neonates with severe hyperbilirubinaemia; deposits of bilirubin in the basal ganglia and brainstem cause intellectual disability, choreoathetosis, and hearing loss; prevented by early phototherapy and exchange transfusion for severe neonatal jaundice

The first-line stimulant pharmacotherapy for ADHD; blocks reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine at the synapse, improving prefrontal cortical function and attention; available as immediate-release and extended-release formulations

A condition arising during the developmental period characterised by developmental deficits that produce impairments in personal, social, academic, or occupational functioning; includes ADHD, ASD, intellectual disability, and specific learning disorders

An autosomal recessive metabolic disorder due to phenylalanine hydroxylase deficiency; untreated phenylalanine accumulation causes intellectual disability; fully preventable with early detection by neonatal screening and a low-phenylalanine diet

Stereotyped or repetitive movements/speech, insistence on sameness and rigid routines, highly fixated interests, and sensory hyper- or hypo-reactivity; the second core diagnostic domain of ASD

An intrinsic difficulty in social-emotional reciprocity, use of non-verbal communicative behaviours, and developing/maintaining social relationships; a core diagnostic domain of ASD

Structured educational provision tailored to the cognitive level and learning needs of children with IDD; mandated under India's Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (2016); combined with inclusive education where feasible

The ability to attribute mental states — beliefs, intentions, emotions, desires — to oneself and others; often impaired in ASD, contributing to difficulties in social understanding and perspective-taking

A group of congenital infections that can cross the placenta and damage the fetal brain: Toxoplasma gondii, Others (syphilis, Zika), Rubella, Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Herpes simplex; cause microcephaly, cerebral calcifications, and intellectual disability

A standardised, norm-referenced caregiver-interview instrument measuring adaptive behaviour in communication, daily living skills, socialisation, and motor skills; one of the primary tools for diagnosing and characterising IDD severity