Developmental delay and disability among under--5 children in a rural ICDS block.

We conducted this study to assess the prevalence of developmental delay, deformity and disability among 0-5 age group childrenn in Pattanakkad rural ICDS block, selected at random from among the ICDS blocks in Alappuzha District, Kerala, India. Of 12520 children upto 5 years in this block, there were a total of 311 children with developmental delay, deviation, deformity or disability giving a prevalence of 2.5 % (95 % CI, 2.22 to 2.77). The prevalence of developmental disabilities up to 2 years was 2.31 (95 % CI, 1.91 to .71) and from 2 to 5 years 2.62 % (95 % CI, 2.25 to 2.99). The prevalence obtained in the study has important policy implications for identifying childhood disabilities in the community.