RT Journal Article
T1 International adoption of children with special needs in Spain
A1 Hernanz Lobo, Alicia
A1 Berzosa Sánchez, Arantxa
A1 Escolano, Lucía
A1 Pérez Muñoz, Sara
A1 Gerig, Nathalia
A1 Sainz, Talía
A1 Mellado Peña, María Jose
A1 García López Hortelano, Milagros
AB International adoption has declined in recent years, although the adoption of children with special needs has arisen. We aim to describe our experience in the international adoption of children with special needs and to analyze the concordance between the pathologies included in pre-adoption reports and the diagnosis made upon arrival. We conducted a retrospective descriptive study including internationally adopted children with special needs evaluated at a reference Spanish unit between 2016 and 2019. Epidemiological and clinical variables were collected from medical records, and pre-adoption reports were compared to established diagnoses following their evaluation and complementary tests. Fifty-seven children were included: 36.8% females, a median age of 27 months [IQR:17–39], mostly coming from China (63.2%) and Vietnam (31.6%). The main pathologies described in the pre-adoption reports were congenital surgical malformations (40.3%), hematological (22.6%), and neurological (24.6%). The initial diagnosis that motivated the international adoption via special needs was confirmed in 79% of the children. After evaluation, 14% were diagnosed with weight and growth delay, and 17.5% with microcephaly, not previously reported. Infectious diseases were also prevalent (29.8%). According to our series, the pre-adoption reports of children with special needs appear accurate, with a low rate of new diagnoses. Pre-existing conditions were confirmed in almost 80% of cases.
PB MDPI
SN 2227-9067
YR 2023
FD 2023-04-05
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/104598
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/104598
LA eng
NO Hernanz Lobo, A.; Berzosa Sánchez, A.; Escolano, L.; Pérez Muñoz, S.; Gerig, N.; Sainz, T.; Mellado Peña, M.J.; García López Hortelano, M. International Adoption of Children with Special Needs in Spain. Children 2023, 10, 690. https://doi.org/10.3390/ children10040690
NO 2023 Descuento MDPI
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España)
NO Instituto de Salud Carlos III
NO European Commission
DS Docta Complutense
RD 10 abr 2025