Physical growth of the mentally retarded children

Abstract

In order to clarify the physical growth of the mentally retarded children, a cross-sectional survey as to eight anthropometric measurements and four related indicies was carried out on 488 boys and 269 girls at the age range of 9 through 17 years, from 1979 to 1981. The intellectually normal subjects as the controlled groups were 339 boys and 302 girls in Toyama city, and the Japanese children measured by the Ministry of Education in 1979. The means and the standard deviations for each measurement were shown by sex and age group. The following major results were found: 1) Means of body height in the mentally retarded were significantly less than those of the Japanese normal children at 0.01 level in both sexes with the exception of age 10 years for boys. 2) Means of chest circumference of the mentally retarded children were significantly smaller than those of the normal children at ages 13, l4, 15 and 16 years in boys and at ages 11 and 15 years in girls. 3) Means of body weight of the mentally retarded were significantly less than those of the normal children at ages 9, 13, 14, 15 and 16 years in boys and at ages 9, 11 and 15 years in girls. 4) In the body height and weight, the mentally retarded children showed larger coefficients of variation (CV) than the normal children in both sexes and in all age groups. In chest circumference ,the mentally retarded children showed smaller CV than the normal children at ages 13, 14 and 15years in boys and at age 9 years in girls. 5) Some age groups of the mentally retarded children had significantly thicker skinfolds than those of the normal groups at the triceps, subscapular and lateral abdomen. It is clear that these subjects tend to be obese. 6) The means of relative sitting height were larger in the mentally retarded groups. The mean differences of this index between the retarded and normal children were significant at 0.05 or 0.01 level for ages 12 to 17 years in both sexes.