TY - CHAP M1 - Book, Section TI - Chapter 91. Developmental Delay A1 - Blum, Nathan J. A2 - Rudolph, Colin D. A2 - Rudolph, Abraham M. A2 - Lister, George E. A2 - First, Lewis R. A2 - Gershon, Anne A. Y1 - 2011 N1 - T2 - Rudolph's Pediatrics, 22e AB - Child development is a dynamic interaction of biologic and environmental factors. Typically, over a period of many years, an infant who is initially entirely dependent on others to meet life-sustaining needs such as food and shelter develops into an independent adult capable of caring for others. Growth of a child’s skills occurs across multiple domains of development, including motor, language, cognitive, and socioemotional domains, and allows for slowly increasing independence. Within any single domain, the sequence of new skills acquired is fairly consistent, but there is significant individual variability in the rate of development within and across the different domains that complicates attempts to distinguish children with normal variations in development from children with developmental delays. However, early detection of developmental delays is essential to promote early intervention that can improve developmental outcomes and family adjustment. During well-child care, clinicians are the professionals most likely to interact with a child early in development and thus have a unique opportunity and responsibility to detect children with developmental delays. The approach to the evaluation of developmental delay is discussed further in Chapters 185 and 547. SN - PB - The McGraw-Hill Companies CY - New York, NY Y2 - 2024/04/25 UR - accesspediatrics.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=6738824 ER -