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Medical Student Curriculum Guide
Knowledge—Development

Rationale

The physical maturation and intellectual, social and motor development of the child follow predictable patterns, and provide the physician with a good indicator of the child's health and neurologic function. The clinician must be familiar with normal patterns of development in order to detect deviations which might be the first sign of a medical or psychological problem.

Learning Objectives

  1. Recognize how the following developmental issues are important in clinical care:

    • Infant: Changes in reflexes, tone and posture; cephalocaudal progression of motor milestones during the first year; stranger anxiety.

    • Toddler/child: Separation and autonomy in two to three-year olds; concept of school readiness.

    • Adolescent: Sequence of physical maturation and sexual maturity rating (Tanner); stages of emotional development.

  2. Recognize the appropriate use of the Denver Developmental Screening Test - Denver II (DDST)**.

  3. Identify early signs of mental retardation and cerebral palsy.

Competencies

  1. Perform appropriate developmental screening on all patients as part of the health maintenance visit or inpatient evaluation.

  2. Perform and interpret a Denver II (DDST)**.

  3. Summarize the main adolescent developmental changes that are important to discuss with parents and adolescents.

  4. Explain how to perform the sexual maturity rating (Tanner).


**More information on the Denver II is available through www.denverii.com and by calling Denver Developmental Materials, Inc. at 1.800.419.4729 [back]


Copyright 2003
Medical College of Georgia
All rights reserved.

School of Medicine | Medical College of Georgia

Please email comments, suggestions or questions to:
Kenda Rindt, krindt@mail.mcg.edu.
December 03, 2003