Endocrine Disorders in Childhood: A Selective Survey of Intellectual and Educational Sequelae

Abstract

This review examines the intellectual and educational sequelae of selected endocrine syndromes. These effects stem from the medical condition and/or as a result of the psychosocial impact of the illness. Disease states in which the endocrine dysfunction is the primary problem or one of several medical consequences associated with another condition are reviewed including: Growth Hormone Deficiency, Psychosocial Short Stature, Turner Syndrome, Precocious Puberty, Klinefelter Syndrome, Congenital Hypothyroidism, and Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Mellitus. Because particular endocrine states may indirectly be associated with negative educational outcomes through the influence of psychosocial stress and inappropriate child rearing styles, the reader is given psychoeducationai information to guide parents, other family members, and allied professionals involved in the care and education of the child.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

David E. Sandberg

David E. Sandberg, PhD, received his doctorate in Psychology from Concordia University (Montreal, Canada) and completed post-doctoral research fellowships in developmental psychobiology and psychoendocrinology at the University of Miami and at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University. He is currently Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the State University of New York at Buffalo and Senior Staff Psychologist in the Psychoendocrinology Program of the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Children's Hospital of Buffalo. His research interests include the psychosocial aspects of short stature and developmental effects of hormones on behaviors showing gender-related variation.

Christopher Barrick

Christopher Barrick, BA, is a doctoral candidate in the Counseling and Educational Psychology Program at the State University of New York at Buffalo. His work on this review paper was accomplished while he worked as a research assistant at Children's Hospital of Buffalo on studies related to the psychosocial aspects of short stature stemming from various medical syndromes.