The association between environmental events and self-injurious behaviour in Cornelia de Lange syndrome

The association between environmental events and self-injurious behaviour in Cornelia de Lange syndrome

Moss J; Oliver C; Hall S; Arron K; Sloneem J; Petty J

Journal of Intellectual Disability Research

2005

Adolescent Child; Child; Preschool; De Lange Syndrome/ep [Epidemiology]; Environment; Female; Humans; Male; Self-Injurious Behavior/di [Diagnosis]; Self-Injurious Behavior/ep [Epidemiology]; Self-Injurious Behavior/px [Psychology]; Severity of Illness Index; behavioral problems; De Lange syndrome; trajectory; characteristics; self-injurious behavior

BACKGROUND: There has been limited empirical research into the environmental causes of self-injury in Cornelia de Lange syndrome. The present study examined the variability of self-injurious behaviour in Cornelia de Lange syndrome across environmental setting events. Additionally, the association between setting events and more specific environmental events was examined. METHOD: A descriptive analysis of observational data on eight children with Cornelia de Lange syndrome aged between 4 and 14 years was carried out. The association between self-injurious behaviour and four environmental setting events and between specific environmental events and setting events was examined using established statistical methods for observational data. RESULTS: Seven out of eight of the participants showed at least one form of self-injurious behaviour that was associated with a particular setting event. The study also demonstrated that the relationship between setting events and environmental events is extremely variable across individuals. CONCLUSIONS: Self-injurious behaviour in some individuals with Cornelia de Lange syndrome is associated with environmental events although the precise nature of the association warrants clarification. Using broad setting events as a methodological tool in isolation provides some insight into the role of specific environmental factors in maintaining self-injurious behaviour but the integrity of setting events must be established.

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