What Are the Physical Features of Children with Intellectual Disability?

Question

What do children with intellectual disability look like?

Answer

Babies with congenital intellectual disability exhibit abnormal facial and physical characteristics. They often appear dull and expressionless. While normal infants can begin to pay attention to their surroundings at one month old, children with intellectual disability show little interest in people and things around them. For example, children with congenital idiocy may have widely spaced eyes, slanted eyes, a flat nose bridge, a tongue that frequently sticks out of the mouth, and drooling, which is commonly referred to as the “international face.” Children with hydrocephalus have particularly large head circumferences, while microcephalic infants have particularly small heads.