MEASURING CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT DISABILIT IES - STUDY DESIGNS, USES AND LIMITATIONS - A LITERATURE-REVIEW

Infantile mortality data are insufficient for perinatal care evaluatio n. Long-term morbidity, particularly child impairment prevalence, need s to be assessed regularly. In this paper different surveys on child i mpairment registration published in the literature are examined: cohor t studies, follow-up studies on ''at risk'' children, cross sectional surveys and morbidity registers. Study designs and case ascertainment are analysed as well as case validation and reference population. The consistency of the results is discussed. In France, most of the studie s on childhood impairment are follow-up studies of at risk children, n ot concerning a geographically defined population, and there is a need for larger epidemiological studies in order to better assess perinata l morbidity and the quality of perinatal cares.