Prevention and Treatment

Although it is not possible to treat some underlying causes of mental retardation,
many of the genetic and teratogenic cases can be prevented through
genetic counseling, prenatal diagnosis, and education to alert people of the
risk to developing fetuses of teratogens such as alcohol. It also is essential to
have an accurate diagnosis of the cause and nature of the problems associated
with individual cases of mental retardation in order for parents to be
able to undertake the best possible intervention program for their children.
Newborn screening programs can detect certain disorders that will lead
to mental retardation, including PKU, congenital hypothyroidism, galactosemia,
maple syrup urine disease, and other inherited metabolic disorders.
Prenatal testing (such as amniocentesis and chorionic villi sampling) can be
used to detect chromosomal disorders, including Down syndrome and several hundred single-gene disorders that may lead to severe physical or mental
disorders in children. Neural tube defects can be detected prenatally by
testing the amniotic fluid for elevated levels of alpha-fetoprotein. Most of
the cases of prenatal testing are done for individuals in which there is a reason
to suspect that the fetus is at an increased risk for a particular genetic
disease or birth defect. These risks include increased maternal age, birth of
a previous child with a disorder, and a family history of a disorder. Genetic
counseling also is used to aid a couple in understanding genetic risks before
a pregnancy has commenced, however, most mentally retarded children are
born to parents with no history of mental retardation.

Sources for Further Study
Baroff, George S., and J. Gregory Olley. Mental Retardation: Nature, Cause,
and Management. 3d ed. Philadelphia: Brunner-Routledge, 1999. This
textbook presents information on the biological and psychological causes
of mental retardation and its management.
Beirne-Smith, Mary, James R. Patton, and Richard F. Ittenback. Mental Retardation.
6th ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2002. A comprehensive
book that deals with historical, biological, psychological and sociological
aspects of mental retardation.
Burack, Jacob A., Robert M. Hodapp, and Edward Zigler, eds. Handbook of
Mental Retardation and Development. New York: Cambridge University Press,
1997. Provides comprehensive information emphasizing the developmental
aspects of mental retardation.
Durkin, M. S., et al. “Prenatal and Postnatal Risk Factors for Mental Retardation
Among Children in Bangladesh.” American Journal of Epidemiology
152, no. 11 (2000): 1024-1033. This study examines the roles of different
factors in causing mental retardation in rural and urban children.
Igumnov, S., and V. Drozdovitch. “The Intellectual Development, Mental,
and Behavioural Disorders in Children from Belarus Exposed in Utero
Following the Chernobyl Accident.” European Psychiatry 15, no. 4 (2000):
244-253. The authors report borderline intellectual functioning and
emotional disorders in children exposed in utero to fallout from Chernobyl,
along with factors thought to contribute (such as relocation).
McKusick, Victor A. Mendelian Inheritance in Man. 12th ed. Baltimore: John
Hopkins University Press, 1999. A comprehensive catalog of human
genes and genetic disorders including mitochondrial genes.
Rimoin, David L., J. Michael Connor, and Reed E. Pyeritz. Emery and Rimoin’s
Principles and Practice of Medical Genetics. 3d ed. New York: Churchill
Livingstone, 1997. This voluminous book includes several chapters dealing
with mental and behavioral disorders.
Donald J. Nash
See also: Developmental Disabilities; Intelligence; Thought: Study and
Measurement.