Development of the Korean Developmental Screening Test for Infants and Children (K-DST)

Area of Science:

• Pediatric developmental screening
• Neurodevelopmental disorder assessment
• Child health surveillance in Korea

Background:

• Existing developmental screening tools in Korea are largely imported, necessitating a culturally relevant and validated instrument.
• There is a critical need for a reliable and valid nationwide screening tool tailored for Korean infants and children.

Purpose of the Study:

• To independently develop, standardize, and validate the Korean Developmental Screening Test for Infants and Children (K-DST).
• To provide an effective screening tool for identifying neurodevelopmental disorders in Korean pediatric populations.

Main Methods:

• The K-DST underwent standardization and validation with 3,284 subjects (ages 4-71 months) from 2012-2014, followed by restandardization and revalidation using 3.06 million children in 2015-2016.
• Reliability was assessed through inter-item consistency and test-retest analysis.
• Validity was evaluated using construct validity, sensitivity, specificity, ROC analysis, and criterion-related validity.

Main Results:

• The revised K-DST, comprising 8 questions across 6 developmental domains, demonstrated high internal consistency (0.73-0.93) and test-retest reliability (0.77-0.88).
• The tool exhibited excellent discriminatory ability with a sensitivity of 0.833 and specificity of 0.979.
• Strong correlations were found between K-DST domains and established measures like the K-Bayley Scales and Korean Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence, supporting its construct and criterion-related validity.

Conclusions:

• The Korean Developmental Screening Test for Infants and Children (K-DST) is a reliable and valid screening instrument.
• The K-DST demonstrates significant potential as an effective tool for the early detection of neurodevelopmental disorders in Korean infants and children.