Screening Criteria Applied to Adults with Intellectual Disabilities
| Screening Criterion | Potential Difference in Population of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities |
|---|---|
| Disease is serious and has important consequences. | Same. |
| Disease is progressive and early treatment is more effective than late treatment. | Depending on extent of cognitive impairment, treatment of disease might be logistically difficult or ineffective, if identified. |
| Disease progresses a preclinical phase easily identified by a screening test. | Adults with ID may have a longer detectable preclinical phase since limitations in cognitive functioning may preclude their accurately identifying and reporting symptoms. |
| Preclinical phase is of long duration and is prevalent enough in screened population to limit false positives/negatives. | Adults with ID may have different prevalence of certain diseases (ex. obesity, sexually transmitted diseases) compared with the general population. |
Adapted from: Aschengrau and Seage, 2003.4