Mental Retardation 

Review

IQ: Epidemiologists have generally used mild to describe the functioning level of persons with IQs from 50 to 70 and severe to refer to the level of those with IQs less than 50.

The American Psychiatric Association defines significantly sub-average intellectual functioning as an IQ of 70 or less. Using the Wechsler Scales, a persons degree of mental retardation is considered to be: · mild – IQ of 55 to 69 · moderate – IQ of 40 to 54 · severe - IQ of 25 to 39 · profound – 24 or less

Function: Persons with mild mental retardation can learn basic academic and vocational skills. Those with moderate or severe mental retardation can learn basic social, communication, and self-help skills. Persons with profound mental retardation may be able to learn some basic self-help skills, but they require constant supervision and care.

Multiple Handicaps: Many persons with mental retardation have multiple impairments, which can interact and have a multiplicative effect on a person’s ability to function. The most common concomitant physical disabilities include: · cerebral palsy and other motor impairments (present in 20% to 30%) · seizure disorders (present in 15% to 30%) · visual or hearing impairments (present in 10% to 20%) · behavioral or psychiatric disorders (present in 15% to 35%)

Prevalence: In the 1980s, The ARC of the United States, a national organization on mental retardation, reviewed prevalence studies and concluded that the 2.5 percent to 3 percent of the United States population had mental retardation. Other prevalence estimates are lower and vary from 0.7 percent to 1.25 percent. Thus, using a 1999 population of 270 million persons, between 2 and 8 million persons in the United States have mental retardation.

Advocacy: Current discussions sometimes tend to lump all disabilities together. Physical Disabilities, and certain Developmental Disabilities are not mental retardation. Mentally Retarded Citizens of Missouri continues to represent the interests of persons with Mental Retardation. Mental Retardation is a succinct condition that many times requires a separate solution.

DOES MERCURY CAUSE AUTISM?

 Emerging medical data suggests that there may be a correlation between immunizations containing mercury given children in the 1980’s with the recent rise in autism!

 Mercury, a dangerous toxin, has been used as a preservative in immunizations for 50 years.  States required more immunizations in the late 1980’s.  A 2 year old would have received 10-12 shots containing mercury, far exceeding allowable amounts for adults.

 In 1999, the Center for Disease Control, the Food & Drug Administration and the American Academy of Pediatricians recommended that mercury preservatives be removed from immunizations.  Most manufacturers have voluntarily complied with the recommendations.

 Recent genetic information indicates that boys are affected four times more than girls.

 While the increased prevalence of autism can be partially attributed to early detection, new understandings of the condition, etc., there seems to be agreement between medical professionals that the correlation with the immunizations is significant.

 Therefore, it seems a prudent measure to reduce mercury exposure to infants, children and pregnant women.

New Down Syndrome Test

 Thursday Oct. 9, 2003 the New England Journal of Medicine reported a new combination of blood tests and ultrasound can detect fetuses with Down syndrome in the first trimester. The study of over 8000 women correctly identified 85% of the diagnosis at about 12 weeks.  Previous procedures discovered the condition at around 20 to 22 weeks. Lead researcher was Dr. Ronald Wapner, chairman of obstetrics and gynecology at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia.

 Dr. Mark Evans, director of the Institute for Genetics and Fetal Medicine at St.Lukes/Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York, said the study will cause a gradual shift from second-trimester screening to this method.

 Down Syndrome occurs in about 1 in 800 newborns. Mothers 35 years or older have a higher risk of having a Down syndrome baby;1 chance in 270 the report concluded.

Basic Etiquette For Interacting With Disabled

St. Louis (AP) Dr. Ana Maria Murgueytio, Director of the Institute for Disability Studies at Saint Louis University, offers these tips:

When greeting a person with vision loss, identify yourself and others. Speak in normal tone of voice and indicate when the conversation is over.

It is all right to offer assistance, but wait until your offer is accepted before you help.

To get the attention of someone with a hearing impairment, tap them on the shoulder or wave. If person reads lips, stay
in the light and keep food, hands and other objects away from your mouth. Written notes also help.

Offer your arm as a way to help visually-impaired persons. This allows you to guide, rather than propel or lead the
person.

Don’t lean or hang on a wheelchair. The chair is part of a person’s body space.

When planning events that involve persons with disabilities, consider their needs before choosing a location.

Relax. Don't be embarrassed to use common expressions such as, “Gotta run,” or “See you later.” Extend the same courtesies
you would to others, such as offering your hand. If someone cannot return your handshake, he will tell you.

Mental Retardation has unique characteristics

Mental Retardation has unique characteristics which sets it apart from other disabilities. To combine treatment and care with other disabilities is inappropriate. To insist that anyone can graduate from college, buy and maintain a home or apartment, marry and become parents, work in normal settings, be successful in the normal classroom and make informed choices is unrealistic and does great harm to the mentally retarded.

While high functioning, borderline retarded individuals can function in the community if adequate money and support are present, most are unable to function on their own and therefore should not be turned loose in the community.

A least restrictive environment can ironically become the most restrictive environment if one can’t function at a level of competence to handle the attached responsibility.

Appropriate treatment and care, not money and theory, should “drive” the mental health delivery system. Mentally Retarded Citizens of Missouri believes that in too many cases professionals are letting money and theory dictate their actions at great peril to persons they serve.

Because of the many different levels of retardation, most are intellectually limited. Many mentally retarded adults have cognitive mental capacities of 2-4-6-8-10 years of age, etc. Would any reasonable, prudent parent allow their “normal” child of 6, 8 or 10 be placed in the community? Would professionals who continue to espouse “full inclusion” for the mentally retarded place their 8 year old daughter in similar environments?

World of the Wrong Size

By Hilary F. Schmittzehe

Some of us are tall, and some of us in-between, some have long hair – others none at all. We differ in shape and personality and in potential and ability. Yet the world in which we live is flexible enough so that most of us fit within the boundaries of "normal" – when we can do the things other persons can do – When we can function at a level comparable to others, our problems are minimized. We master a skill or understand a new idea and we take accomplishments for granted. But for some persons the world is too big – to fast – too complicated. It is the wrong size world for those who cannot go beyond certain levels of performance. The world of the handicapped – whether from birth or acquired later – is the wrong size. For the mentally retarded, our world can be the wrong size. Can you Imagine what it would be like if you were as old as you are today and you found a child’s game difficult to play? What if many of the things you tried to learn were too hard and you still didn’t know how to read or write or to feed yourself or to get dressed. What if your ability to learn – to adapt and to compete were so limited, that the world wasn’t your size at all.

Retardation means slowness in progress or development. The mentally retarded person has continual difficulty in learning. He has trouble in applying what he does learn in everyday life. His mental handicap may be so slight that he may merely be considered "slow", or his handicap may be so severe that his mind barely develops. In addition, the retarded individual may have various physical handicaps including blindness, deaf-ness and poor motor coordination which complicated his condition.

Mental Retardation is incomplete or impaired mental development. It results in a less than normal capacity to learn or adapt and is usually a lifelong condition. Mental illness is the abnormal function of the mind. When feelings and thoughts become disturbed and twisted and irrational unrealistic behavior follows. Mental illness can be treated and often cured. It is possible that a mentally retarded person can also be mentally ill.

Many persons think that all mentally retarded persons are the same. This is not the case. Persons who are mentally retarded differ from each other as do you and I or the person sitting next to you. There are many kinds and different degrees of mental retardation. Each retarded person is an individual who has his own needs and his own potential.

For example consider a retarded man 35 years old with the learning ability of a 10 year old. In previous years he may have spent much of his time sitting at home watching television because there was nothing much for him to do. Today he can be employed in a sheltered workshop like VIP Industries. Now this man has a job doing simple work and is proud of his accomplishments.

Consider a mentally retarded girl of 8 years old. She had trouble performing even ordinary tasks such as buttoning her clothes or tying her shoes laces, but she can learn things with specialized training.

Consider a happy 5 years old mentally retarded boy who loves to play, who still needs help with eating and walking and speaks only a few words. He will need special help all his life from his family and community.

Consider a 3 year old who has not developed as other 3 year olds and he never will because his mental and physical problems are so severe that he will need constant care for the rest of his life.

These are only a few of the examples of the 61/2 million mentally retarded children and adults in the United States. Each is an individual with his own personality and his own possibilities and limitations depending on the mildness or severity of his retardation. Generally, we measure mental retardation by the person’s ability to learn and to apply what he learns to every day life. If you were mildly retarded your condition might not be easily noticed. You would have a mental age from 8 years to just under normal. While you couldn’t keep up with regular classes in school you could learn to read or write and learn simple arithmetic. You could develop social and job skills to become self-sufficient. The great majority of mentally retarded persons are mildly handicapped like this. If you were moderately retarded, you could learn basic habits and skills – you could learn to speak in simple sentences and to write simple words. Your mental age would probably range from 3-8 years and under supervised conditions could be trained to do simple work.

If you were severely retarded, you would have less intelligence than a 3 year old. You might be able to say a few words. You could probably be able to feed yourself, and follow a daily routine – but you would need continued protection.

If you were profoundly retarded, you would probably not be able to walk or talk or learn many other skills – yet you would have feelings – you would respond to others. Only a very small percentage of all retarded individuals have a handicap this severe.

Mental retardation can occur in any family regardless of its social, racial or intellectual background. It can be found in the poor home or the rich home – (Ferguson) – in the city or on the farm. At one time mental retardation was thought to be inherited – now we know there are many causes. Mental Retardation may result from an injury, an illness, a genetic defect or from unfavorable emotional, cultural or health factors – or from perhaps over a hundred causes not yet known.

Some causes of mental retardation occur because an individual may receive little or no stimulus – he does not have the opportunity to learn. His daily environment is so deprived that he does not receive the intellectual stimulus he needs. Unfavorable health factors are other causative features in mental retardation. These might include inadequate prenatal care and postnatal care and poor nutrition during the child’s formative years. Many children who are retarded because of emotional problems can be helped by psychiatric care - Those children who are economically deprived need learning opportunities. If they are given stimulus and their environment enriched, they may be able to catch up. But for other retarded children and adults, there is no way to replace brain cells that have been injured or destroyed. For these persons, the best answers we have for today is training: to allow them to use all the mental capabilities they do have. In the past, we have focused on the limitations of the retarded – now we must focus on his possibilities. He does not want pity because of his limitations; he only wants and needs the change to make the most of his abilities. His needs and wants are similar to yours and mine – Not different. Love and acceptance to the retarded child is as important to him as to any other child. Like all children, he needs help in growing up – only he needs MORE help and he needs it LONGER. Most retarded children can benefit from school programs geared to their special needs. Basic school subjects: Homemaking, industrial arts, crafts and social and recreational skills can be learned. The increasing number of special education classes in our school give the retarded child a chance to learn at his own speed. For persons with mental retardation or other developmental disabilities our area has many programs to help them adjust the world to their size. Many advances have been made this last decade in the area of education, vocational rehabilitation, mental health, work opportunities and accessibility to public buildings. shopping areas, et cetera.

The ARC of the US Versus RCOMO