Which of the following childhood disorder improves with increase in age?

RUHS, Jaipur, PB B.Sc Nursing Entrance-2018

Child Health Nursing (Pediatrics)

Medium

Appeared in: RUHS, Jaipur, PB B.Sc Nursing Entrance-2018

Explanation

Temper tantrums are a normal and expected part of development, especially in toddlers aged 1-3 years.
They are considered a 'developmentally normative' behavior, stemming from a child's frustration with their limited communication and self-regulation skills.
The frequency and intensity of tantrums naturally decline as the child matures, typically resolving by age 4-5 as language and coping mechanisms improve.

Option A: Conduct disorder is a persistent and repetitive pattern of antisocial behavior that violates the rights of others. It is a serious psychiatric condition, not a developmental phase.
Option B: This is a very broad term. Specific emotional disorders, such as childhood anxiety or depression, do not reliably improve with age and often require professional therapy and support to prevent them from becoming chronic.
Option D: While some sleep issues are transient (e.g., related to teething or developmental leaps), formal sleep disorders like parasomnias or limit-setting sleep disorder often require specific behavioral interventions and do not consistently resolve on their own as a child ages.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Normal vs. Abnormal Child Development and Behavioral Disorders as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Nurses are crucial in educating parents to differentiate between normal developmental behaviors like tantrums and warning signs of a more serious disorder, reducing parental anxiety and promoting appropriate responses.
Providing anticipatory guidance on managing tantrums helps prevent negative parent-child interactions and avoids reinforcing the tantrum behavior.
What if? If an 8-year-old is having frequent, intense temper tantrums, this is outside the developmentally normal range. The nurse should recommend a comprehensive evaluation for underlying conditions such as Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), ADHD, learning disabilities, or significant psychosocial stressors.

How to Approach the Question

First, identify the core of the question: it asks for a childhood issue that is typically self-resolving with maturation.
Evaluate each option against the concept of normal child development versus a persistent pathology.
Recall that temper tantrums are a classic, almost universal, feature of toddlerhood (the 'terrible twos'), linked to the developmental gap between a child's desires and their ability to communicate.
Contrast this with 'Conduct disorder,' which is a formal psychiatric diagnosis indicating a persistent pattern of severe antisocial behavior.
Recognize that 'Emotional problems' and 'Sleep disorder' are broad categories for conditions that often require specific interventions and do not have a predictable pattern of resolving on their own.
Conclude that temper tantrums are the best fit for a 'disorder' (in the lay sense) that improves with age as a normal part of growing up.

Concept Tested & Keywords

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E6 Kaplan Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry-2022 (pp 1-3768 of 3768) p. 591-593

E6 Text Book Of Pediatric Nursing 3rd Panchali Pal — Part 3 (pp 477-702 of 713) pp. 108-110, 109-111