Cardiometabolic Risk in Pediatric Patients with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

https://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797(24)00408-2/fulltext Children with intellectual and developmental disabilities face significantly higher risks for serious health conditions, such as heart disease, an AHRQ-funded study in American Journal of Preventive Medicine concluded. The authors analyzed 33,192 patients, ages 6 to 17, from 44 clinics in a rural Midwestern health system. They found that 1,206 children (3.6 percent) had been diagnosed with an intellectual or developmental disability. These patients were 6.8 times as likely to have prediabetes, 2.67 times as likely to have diabetes, and 6.4 times as likely to have high blood pressure, compared with children without that diagnosis. Obesity, smoking and high lipid counts were also more prevalent among children with the disabilities. The authors emphasized the need for targeted research and early interventions to improve lifelong health outcomes for these children.