Early Signs of Developmental Delays
When you have a child, you want your child to be developing and growing normally. So, how do you know? A developmental assessment from your pediatrician can help you find out. The pediatricians at Burlington Pediatrics in Burlington, MA, provide a wide range of medical services for children, including developmental assessments and treatment of developmental delays.
What You Need to Know About Developmental Delays and Developmental Assessments
There are some early signs of developmental delays for you to watch out for. Your child might have developmental delays if your child is having difficulty with simple tasks like these:
- Talking
- Remembering things
- Rolling over, sitting up, crawling, and walking
- Using fine motor skills
- Understanding what other people are saying
- Problem-solving
- Social situations with other children
If you notice any of the signs listed above, you should schedule a developmental assessment with your pediatrician. A developmental assessment can:
- Identify developmental delays early, to begin treatment
- Identify whether your child has achieved appropriate developmental milestones
- Assess the effectiveness of treatment
A developmental assessment has several steps. Your pediatrician will:
- Perform a comprehensive medical record review including medications your child is taking, recent illnesses, and hospitalizations
- Observe behaviors, mannerisms, cognitive abilities, emotional and physical delays, and other factors
- Provide questionnaires, checklists, and surveys to gather important developmental information
- Interview you and members of your household, your child’s teachers, and others close to your child
A developmental assessment will enable your pediatrician to formulate a plan of treatment to help your child. The treatment plan should improve your child’s performance, behavior, and learning new life skills.
According to the American Pediatric Association, your child should have developmental assessments at 9, 18, and 30 months. Your child will also be screened for autism at 18 and 24 months.
To learn more about the American Pediatric Association guidelines for developmental assessment, please click here.
Want To Know More?
To learn more about the early signs of developmental delays and how your pediatrician can help, call the pediatricians at Burlington Pediatrics in Burlington, MA. You can reach them in the office by calling (781) 272-2210, so call today.