Psychosocial Correlates of Neurodevelopmental Disabilities in 2- to 3-Year-Olds
Abstract
Rationale Canada's National Longitudinal Study of Children and Youth survey data provide insights into chronic health conditions in children. Children with neurodevelopmental disabilities (NDD) are at increased risk for adverse behavioral outcomes.Methods We examined data from 3 cycles of Canada's National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth for the presence of epilepsy (Epi), cerebral palsy (CP), and intellectual disability (ID) in 2- to 3-year-olds. We then examined the relationship of NDD to composite measures of behavior: hyperactivity-inattention (HI), prosocial behaviors (PS), emotional disorder-anxiety (EA), physical aggression oppositional behavior (AO), and separation anxiety (SA).Results There were 15 children with Epi, 25 with CP and 28 with ID in a sample of 10,879, which represented a population of 756,848 2- to 3-year-old Canadian children. Comparison of mean scores of the NDD groups and controls (Welch's ANOVA), indicated statistically significant differences in HI, PS, EA, and SA at the p < 0.001 level. Post hoc analysis showed significant intergroup differences. Children with epilepsy did not differ from controls on any of the behavioral measures. However, in comparison to controls, children with intellectual disability had higher EA and SA scores and lower PS scores, and those with cerebral palsy had lower PS scores.Conclusions Children with NDD show differences in behavioral outcomes at a very early age when compared with controls. Screening for these behaviors and early intervention programs may help avoid longer term psychiatric comorbidity associated with these disabilities.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Separation anxiety symptoms in children with CP have been documented from a very early age.
“Separation anxiety symptoms in children with CP have been documented from a very early age [29]”
From The Mental Health of Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Review of the Last Five Years of Research (2025) · cites this paper as [29]
Cites
Risky families: Family social environments and the mental and physical health of offspring
Repetti, R. L., Taylor, S. E., & Seeman, T. E. (2002) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/0033-2909.128.2.330 · Cited by 2,884 · see citing works
Masten, A. S., & Cicchetti, D. (2010) · Development and Psychopathology · doi:10.1017/s0954579410000222 · Cited by 1,800 · see citing works
Temperamental Origins of Child and Adolescent Behavior Problems: From Age Three to Age Fifteen
Caspi, A., Henry, B., McGee, R. O., Moffitt, T. E., & Silva, P. A. (1995) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1995.tb00855.x · Cited by 835 · see citing works
Côté, S., Vaillancourt, T., LeBlanc, J. C., Nagin, D. S., & Tremblay, R. E. (2006) · Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology · doi:10.1007/s10802-005-9001-z · Cited by 641 · see citing works
van den Boom, D. C. (1994) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1994.tb00829.x · Cited by 613 · see citing works
Tronick, E., & Reck, C. (2009) · Harvard Review of Psychiatry · doi:10.1080/10673220902899714 · Cited by 530 · see citing works
Temperamental Origins of Child and Adolescent Behavior Problems: From Age Three to Age Fifteen
Caspi, A., Henry, B., McGee, R. O., et al. (1995) · Child Development · doi:10.2307/1131190 · Cited by 524 · see citing works
Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing
Waldfogel, J., Craigie, T., & Brooks‐Gunn, J. (2010) · The Future of Children · doi:10.1353/foc.2010.0002 · Cited by 483 · see citing works
Scherer, N., Verhey, I., & Kuper, H. (2019) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0219888 · Cited by 419 · see citing works
Neurobehavioral Comorbidities in Children With Active Epilepsy: A Population-Based Study
Reilly, C. J., Atkinson, P., Das, K. B., Chin, R., Aylett, S., Burch, V., Gillberg, C., Scott, R. C., & Neville, B. G. R. (2014) · PEDIATRICS · doi:10.1542/peds.2013-3787 · Cited by 378 · see citing works
Behavior Problems in Children Before First Recognized Seizures
AUSTIN, J. K., Harezlak, J., Dunn, D. W., Huster, G. A., Rose, D. F., & Ambrosius, W. T. (2001) · PEDIATRICS · doi:10.1542/peds.107.1.115 · Cited by 378 · see citing works
Human Copy Number Variation and Complex Genetic Disease
Girirajan, S., Campbell, C. D., & Eichler, E. E. (2011) · Annual Review of Genetics · doi:10.1146/annurev-genet-102209-163544 · Cited by 367 · see citing works
Parenting stress among parents of children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Craig, F., Operto, F. F., De Giacomo, A., Margari, L., Frolli, A., Conson, M., Ivagnes, S., Monaco, M., & Margari, F. (2016) · Psychiatry Research · doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2016.05.016 · Cited by 326 · see citing works
Schizophrenia and the neurodevelopmental continuum:evidence from genomics
Owen, M. J., & O’Donovan, M. C. (2017) · World Psychiatry · doi:10.1002/wps.20440 · Cited by 326 · see citing works
Relative Burden of Large CNVs on a Range of Neurodevelopmental Phenotypes
Girirajan, S., Brkanac, Z., Coe, B. P., Baker, C. A., Vives, L., Vu, T. H., Shafer, N., Bernier, R., Ferrero, G. B., Silengo, M., et al. (2011) · PLoS Genetics · doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1002334 · Cited by 324 · see citing works
Mothers' Mental Illness and Child Behavior Problems: Cause-Effect Association or Observation Bias?
Najman, J. M., Williams, G. M., Nikles, J., SPENCE, S., Bor, W., O'Callaghan, M. J., Brocque, R. M. L., & Andersen, M. J. (2000) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1097/00004583-200005000-00013 · Cited by 321 · see citing works
Behavioral Disorders in Pediatric Epilepsy: Unmet Psychiatric Need
Ott, D. V. M., Siddarth, P., Gurbani, S. G., Koh, S., Tournay, A. E., Shields, W. D., & Caplan, R. (2003) · Epilepsia · doi:10.1046/j.1528-1157.2003.25002.x · Cited by 285 · see citing works
Bernard, K., Nissim, G., Vaccaro, S., Harris, J. L., & Lindhiem, O. J. (2018) · Attachment & Human Development · doi:10.1080/14616734.2018.1430839 · Cited by 268 · see citing works
Cognitive and neurodevelopmental comorbidities in paediatric epilepsy
Nickels, K. C., Zaccariello, M. J., Hamiwka, L. D., & Wirrell, E. C. (2016) · Nature Reviews Neurology · doi:10.1038/nrneurol.2016.98 · Cited by 238 · see citing works
Exploring Risk Factors for the Emergence of Children's Mental Health Problems
Essex, M. J., Kraemer, H. C., Armstrong, J. M., Boyce, W. T., Goldsmith, H. H., Klein, M. H., Woodward, H., & Kupfer, D. J. (2006) · Archives of General Psychiatry · doi:10.1001/archpsyc.63.11.1246 · Cited by 233 · see citing works
Depression and anxiety symptoms: onset, developmental course and risk factors during early childhood
Côté, S. M., Boivin, M., Liu, X., Nagin, D. S., Zoccolillo, M., & Tremblay, R. E. (2009) · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry · doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2009.02099.x · Cited by 226 · see citing works
Kahn, R. S., Brandt, D. M., & Whitaker, R. C. (2004) · Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine · doi:10.1001/archpedi.158.8.721 · Cited by 186 · see citing works
Colvert, E., Rutter, M., Beckett, C., Castle, J., Groothues, C., Hawkins, A., Kreppner, J., O'connor, T. G., Stevens, S., & Sonuga-Barke, E. J. S. (2008) · Development and Psychopathology · doi:10.1017/s0954579408000278 · Cited by 182 · see citing works
Depression, anxiety and quality of life in parents of children with epilepsy
Lv, R., Wu, L., Jin, L., Lü, Q., Wang, M., Qu, Y., & Liu, H. (2009) · Acta Neurologica Scandinavica · doi:10.1111/j.1600-0404.2009.01184.x · Cited by 141 · see citing works
What are neurodevelopmental disorders?
Ismail, F. Y., & Shapiro, B. K. (2019) · Current Opinion in Neurology · doi:10.1097/wco.0000000000000710 · Cited by 141 · see citing works
Genetic and environmental vulnerabilities in children with neurodevelopmental disorders
Karmiloff-Smith, A., D’Souza, D., Dekker, T. M., Van Herwegen, J., Xu, F., Rodic, M., & Ansari, D. (2012) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.1121087109 · Cited by 131 · see citing works
Nantel‐Vivier, A., Pihl, R. O., Côté, S. M., & Tremblay, R. E. (2014) · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry · doi:10.1111/jcpp.12235 · Cited by 129 · see citing works
Psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood-onset epilepsy
Berg, A. T., Caplan, R., & Hesdorffer, D. C. (2011) · Epilepsy & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2010.12.038 · Cited by 127 · see citing works
Common psychiatric comorbidities in epilepsy: How big of a problem is it?
Salpekar, J. A., & Mula, M. (2018) · Epilepsy & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2018.07.023 · Cited by 120 · see citing works
Berg, A. T., Loddenkemper, T., & Baca, C. B. (2013) · Epilepsia · doi:10.1111/epi.12479 · Cited by 106 · see citing works
Behaviour problems in children with new-onset epilepsy
Dunn{xa*, D. W., AUSTIN, J. K., & Huster, G. A. (1997) · Seizure · doi:10.1016/s1059-1311(97)80075-1 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
Operto, F. F., Smirni, D., Scuoppo, C., Padovano, C., Vivenzio, V., Quatrosi, G., Carotenuto, M., Precenzano, F., & Pastorino, G. M. G. (2021) · Brain Sciences · doi:10.3390/brainsci11050584 · Cited by 81 · see citing works
The evolution of the concepts of seizures and epilepsy: What’s in a name?
Patel, P., & Moshé, S. L. (2019) · Epilepsia Open · doi:10.1002/epi4.12375 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Jones, J. E., Siddarth, P., Gurbani, S. G., Shields, W. D., & Caplan, R. (2010) · Epilepsy & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2010.03.015 · Cited by 73 · see citing works
Cerebral palsy and communication
Pennington, L. (2008) · Paediatrics and Child Health · doi:10.1016/j.paed.2008.05.013 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
The Effects of Parental Mood on Reports of Their Children’s Psychopathology
Maoz, H., Goldstein, T. R., Goldstein, B. I., Axelson, D., Fan, J., Hickey, M. B., Monk, K., Sakolsky, D. J., Diler, R. S., Brent, D. A., et al. (2014) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2014.07.005 · Cited by 60 · see citing works
Overview: The epidemiology of neurodevelopmental disorders
Yeargin‐Allsopp, M., & Boyle, C. A. (2002) · Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews · doi:10.1002/mrdd.10030 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
Prevalence of Childhood Epilepsy in Canada
Prasad, A. N., Sang, X., Corbett, B. A., & Burneo, J. G. (2011) · Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences / Journal Canadien des Sciences Neurologiques · doi:10.1017/s0317167100054081 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Self-citationLipscombe, B., Boyd, R. N., Coleman, A., Fahey, M. C., Rawicki, B., & Whittingham, K. (2016) · Research in Developmental Disabilities · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2016.02.013 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
An Intervention Program for Families With Irritable Infants
Keefe, M. R., Barbosa, G. A., Froese‐Fretz, A., Kotzer, A. M., & Lobo, M. L. (2005) · MCN The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing · doi:10.1097/00005721-200507000-00004 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Pérez‐Edgar, K. E., LoBue, V., & Buss, K. A. (2021) · Depression and Anxiety · doi:10.1002/da.23227 · Cited by 24 · see citing works
Internalizing symptoms in intractable pediatric epilepsy: Structural and functional brain correlates
Morningstar, M. A., Hung, A., Mattson, W. I., Gedela, S., Ostendorf, A. P., & Nelson, E. E. (2019) · Epilepsy & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yebeh.2019.106845 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Prasad, A. N., Burneo, J. G., & Corbett, B. A. (2014) · Seizure · doi:10.1016/j.seizure.2014.07.012 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Self-citationPrasad, C., Corbett, B. A., & Prasad, A. N. (2014) · Seizure · doi:10.1016/j.seizure.2014.03.001 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Self-citationPrasad, A. N., & Corbett, B. A. (2016) · Epilepsy Research · doi:10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2016.10.019 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Self-citationPrasad, A. N., & Corbett, B. A. (2019) · Journal of Pediatric Neurology · doi:10.1055/s-0039-3400974 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Self-citationHung, A., Morningstar, M. A., Mattson, W. I., Saygin, Z. M., & Nelson, E. E. (2021) · Epilepsy Research · doi:10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2021.106701 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
The Mental Health of Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Review of the Last Five Years of Research
Rausch, R., Chahin, S., Miller, C., Dopheide, L., Bovio, N., Harris, A., & Patel, D. (2025) · Journal of Clinical Medicine · doi:10.3390/jcm14124364 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
“…depression, or both diagnoses for children with CP [11–14, Separation anxiety symptoms in children with CP have been documented from a very early age [29], and anxiety is particularly pronounced in girls, who are 2.3 times more likely to be diagnosed with anxiety disorders compared to boys [30].”
Influential
- Authors
- Fitneva, S. A., Corbett, B. A., & Prasad, A. N.
- Affiliations
- Queen's University (CA)
- Western University (CA)
- Corresponding author
- Prasad, Asuri N.
- Venue
- Epilepsy & Behavior
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2023-09
- Volume
- 146
- Pages
- 109370
- ISSN
- 1525-5050 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4385628246
- Cited by
- 1
- References
- 46
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1
- FWCI
- 0.15
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Epilepsy & Behavior (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Ontario Brain Institute
- Epilepsy Research Program of the Ontario Brain Institute
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Family and Disability Support Research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Cerebral Palsy and Movement Disorders
- Keywords
- neurodevelopmental disorders, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, toddlers, hyperactivity/inattention, prosocial behavior, physical aggression, oppositional behavior, separation anxiety, behavioral effects, early screening, early intervention, psychiatric comorbidity
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Canada, Cerebral Palsy, Child, Child, Preschool, Epilepsy, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Intellectual Disability, Neurodevelopmental Disorders
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
