Links to Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities Resources
Mental retardation and developmental disabilities affect the learning and life experience of many Americans. Conservative estimates indicate that about 1 in 100 Americans qualify for the diagnosis of mental retardation (MR). Autistic disorders are estimated to affect between 5 and 20 in 10,000 individuals. A variety of other developmental disabilities affect many others. Many mentally retarded or developmentally disabled persons, especially those with milder deficits, live and work around their intellectual deficits and have adapted to live quite independently in the community with minimal support. Others, particularly those with more severe MR or those with additional problems, for examples cerebral palsy, sensory impairments, mental health or substance use disorders, require considerable intervention and support to live in the community. The most severe cases may require institutional level of care.
The websites offered here are selected as starting points for clinicians, patients and loved ones to learn more about mental retardation and developmental disabilities, research in the field and the best practices in treatment and support for those affected by the disorders.
We hope you will find this site a helpful gateway to the world of information about mental retardation and developmental disabilities available on the internet.
- Expert Consensus Guideline
- Practice Guideline Clearing House
- Practice Guideline Gateway
- National Institute of Mental Health Fact Sheet
- Diagnosis, Treatment, Research Gateway
- American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
- American Society for Adolescent Psychiatry
- American Academy of Pediatrics
- New York State Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities
- Department of Health and Human Services Adminstration for Children and Families
- Autism Society of America
- American Association of Intellectual Developmental Disabilities
- Association for Retarded Citizens
