Pica in institutionalized mentally retarded persons

Pica, an eating disorder, is commonly observed in infants, young children and in developmentally delayed persons. The behaviour is regarded as pathological if it persists beyond the age of about 18 months. The present study was designed to study the prevalence of pathological pica in a state residential institution for mentally retarded persons. Of the total sample of 607 residents, 56 or 9.2% were identified and observed to engage in pica. The occurrence of pica was related to the degree of retardation and age of the residents. Observational data showed that the occurrence of pica varied in frequency across four different settings, both within and between subjects. A wide variety of objects were used for pica including clothing, dirt, dust and fluff off the floor, toys, paper, and grass. Medical case notes showed that only a small number of the residents engaging in pica suffered from the commonly known problems associated with pica.