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Parental compliance after screening social development in toddlers.

Dietz C, Swinkels SH, van Daalen E, van Engeland H, Buitelaar JK

Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands. cdietz@umcutrecht.nl

OBJECTIVES: To examine the prevalence of parents' compliance with follow-up measurements after their child tested positive at a screening to assess problems in social development, as well as to find demographic, screening-related, and child-specific factors associated with parental compliance. DESIGN: Two-stage screening design. SETTING: Utrecht, the Netherlands. PARTICIPANTS: A random population of 31,724 children were screened at well-baby clinics at age 14 to 15 months (screen 1). Three hundred sixty-four children underwent screen 2 (255 children who scored positive at screen 1 [population screening] and 109 children younger than 36 months who were identified by surveillance because of suspected problems in their social development). Main Exposure A 2-stage screening was applied. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Compliance with recommendations of having either a second screening (after screen 1) or clinical evaluation (after screen 2). RESULTS: Of 370 children who tested positive at screen 1, parents of 255 children (69%) complied with screen 2. Three groups were distinguished after screen 2 (n = 173): early compliance (clinical evaluation within 6 months) (68%), late compliance (clinical evaluation after 6 months) (14%), and noncompliance (no clinical evaluation) (18%). Late compliance and noncompliance were more common in parents of younger children and children who were identified via population screening. Parents of children with either relatively high cognitive skills and/or low scores on screening measures were less inclined to comply. CONCLUSIONS: Study results suggest higher effectiveness of surveillance over population screening. Screening may well be applied as a second step after surveillance to identify children who need further clinical evaluation.

Published 3 April 2007 in Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, 161(4): 363-8.
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