International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Core Sets for cerebral palsy, autism spectrum disorder, and attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder

Abstract

Aim: Capturing functional information is crucial in childhood disability. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) Core Sets promote assessments of functional abilities and disabilities in clinical practice regarding circumscribed diagnoses. However, the specificity of ICF Core Sets for childhood-onset disabilities has been doubted. This study aimed to identify content commonalities and differences among the ICF Core Sets for cerebral palsy (CP), and the newly developed Core Sets for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Method: The categories within each Core Set were aggregated at the ICF component and chapter levels. Content comparison was conducted using descriptive analyses. Results: The activities and participation component of the ICF was the most covered across all Core Sets. Main differences included representation of ICF components and coverage of ICF chapters within each component. CP included all ICF components, while ADHD and ASD predominantly focused on activities and participation. Environmental factors were highly represented in the ADHD Core Sets (40.5%) compared to the ASD (28%) and CP (27%) Core Sets. Interpretation: International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health Core Sets for CP, ASD, and ADHD capture both common but also unique functional information, showing the importance of creating condition-specific, ICF-based tools to build functional profiles of individuals with childhood-onset disabilities. What this paper adds: The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) Core Sets for cerebral palsy (CP), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and attention-deficit–hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) include unique functional information. The ICF-based tools for CP, ASD, and ADHD differ in terms of representation and coverage of ICF components and ICF chapters. Representation of environmental factors uniquely influences functioning and disability across ICF Core Sets for CP, ASD and ADHD.