Is family social exclusion associated with child motor and socioemotional development delay? A cross-sectional exploratory study.
Clariana Vitória Ramos De Oliveira, Cláudia Nery Teixeira Palombo, Joshua Jeong and 2 others
PMID 37229522WHAT IT FOUND
Children from the most socially excluded families had significantly higher odds of motor and socioemotional development delays compared to the least excluded.
Hospitalization in the last year also increased motor delay odds, while breastfeeding was associated with lower odds.
Key findings
01Children in the most excluded social groups had greater odds of motor development delay (OR = 3.4) compared to the least vulnerable groups.
02Children in moderately and most excluded groups had greater odds of socioemotional developmental delay (OR = 3.20 and OR = 3.09) compared to the least excluded.
03Breastfed children were 0.53 times less likely to have motor development delay than non-breastfed children.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPsWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Cross-sectional design prevents establishing causality between social exclusion and developmental delay. The study was conducted in a single municipality in Southeastern Brazil, limiting generalizability to other regions or countries. The developmental assessment instrument is a screening tool, not a diagnostic one, potentially misclassifying some children. Data on parental behavior, interaction quality, and mental health were not collected, which are known influencers of child development.
Declared interests
Funded by the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) and CAPES. Authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the odds ratios as evidence that social exclusion causes developmental delay. This is a cross-sectional study, so it only shows an association at a single point in time, and the direction of causality cannot be determined.