Child Disintegrative Disorder, Asperger's Disorder, Rett's Syndrome

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Pervasive Developmental Disorders are characterized by “severe and pervasive impairment in several areas of development” (Tsai, 1998). In the 1994 edition of the Diagnostic Statistic Manuel version IV, three new categories were introduced under Pervasive Developmental Disorders. These include: Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Asperger's Disorder, and Rett's Syndrome (Volkmar, 2005). All these disorders occur in early childhood and are often not noticed by a parent or primary caregiver until it is noticed that the child is not achieving normal developmental milestones. Childhood Disintegrative Disorder is a severe condition in which a child will develop normally until age 3 or 4, then rapidly lose already learned skills such as communication skills, motor ability, nonverbal behaviors, and social skills over the course of a few months (Zieve, 2012). Theodore Heller originally described the condition and reported his findings in 1908. It has been only recently that the disorder has been recognized as a clinical condition and was included into the DSM-IV in its 1994 release (Westphal, 2014). CDD is an uncommon condition. Since Heller's original description in 1908, there have been approximately 100 reported cases in literature (Volkmar, 2005). In case by case studies, the prevalence has shown to have about an equal sex ratio, although more recent studies have shown that CDD is slightly more common in males (Barber National Institute, 2013). Symptoms of Childhood Disintegrative Disorder consist of: a lack or delay of spoken language, loss of social skills, loss of bowel and bladder control, overall loss of communication skills, both verbal and nonverbal, loss of motor skills, inability to begin or maintain a conversation, and p... ... middle of paper ... ...ew of Rett Syndrome. Journal of Neuropathology & Experimental Neurology, 56(8), Retrieved from http://journals.lww.com/jneuropath/Citation/1997/08000/Review_of_Rett_Syndrome.1.aspx. Einspieler, C. (2005). Is the early development of girls with rett disorder really normal?. Pediatric Research, 57, Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/pr/journal/v57/n5-1/full/pr2005113a.html. Marchetto, M. et al. (2010). A model for neural development and treatment of rett syndrome using human induced pluripotent stem cells. Science Direct Journals, 143(4), Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0092867410011864 Tropea, D. et al.. (2008). Partial reversal of rett syndrome-like symptoms in mecp2 mutant mice. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 106(6), Retrieved from http://www.pnas.org/content/106/6/2029.full

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