Why do preschoolers undergo developmental screening?
Brain maturation is most rapid when children are young. Developmental research has shown that interventions are most effective during times of rapid neuronal growth. Assessing and treating developmental delay (DD) at the infant and toddler level will achieve optimal results. Presently 15% of elementary children are developmentally delayed (1), 15% are obese (2), and 14.3% have psychiatric disorders (3). The sooner these conditions are assessed through developmental screening, the more effective will be the subsequent treatment. 2. Are all children screened? Most definitely not! Studies have shown that only 50% of developmental delays are detected prior to school entry (1). One of the problems with developmental screening is that there is no standardized assessment process, leaving each community, state or province to determine their own methods. Sweden is quite advanced, requiring monthly physician visits from 0-18 months. Process for detecting DD is usually by primary physician initia
