Parents' initial concerns about children and adolescents with developmental disorders

Introduction. Developmental disorders (DD) are a group of chronic conditions that begin during brain development and typically manifest during childhood. Assessing parents' concerns about their child's development is a central part of developmental monitoring. Objective. To analyze the relationship between the initial concerns expressed by families and the developmental diagnoses obtained at a specialized unit. Population and methods. This was a cross-sectional, retrospective, observational, and analytical study. We reviewed transdisciplinary diagnostic evaluations conducted between April 1, 2017, and February 29, 2024, at a Developmental Pediatrics Unit. Patients aged 4 months to 19 years referred for suspected developmental disorders were included. Associations between parental concern profiles and diagnoses were analyzed using bivariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression. Results. A total of 570 patients were analyzed. Family concerns showed statistically significant and diagnosis-specific associations. In autism spectrum disorders, concerns related to language and social skills were consistently associated with the diagnosis. In intellectual disability and learning disorders, academic concerns showed the most significant association, with distinct patterns compared to other areas. Additionally, associations were observed between male gender and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and between genetic syndromes and intellectual disability. Conclusion. Parental concerns are a clinically relevant descriptive tool with specific patterns linked to developmental diagnoses. Systematic identification of these concerns can guide the initial evaluation and help prioritize referrals.