Behavioural and developmental concerns are common issues raised by parents during consultations. These may present in various ways, including delays in acquiring age-appropriate skills, differences observed when compared with other children, or behaviours that affect everyday life.
A paediatric assessment can help clarify whether a child’s development or behaviour is within the expected range, provide reassurance and support when concerns are part of normal variation and identify areas where additional intervention is required. Dr Emanuela Manea provides calm, structured assessments with clear explanations and practical guidance tailored to each child and family. These concerns are often initially explored during a General Paediatric Consultation in clinic or online.
Behavioural and developmental concerns in babies commonly include excessive crying, sleep or feeding difficulties, fear of strangers or separation, and breath-holding episodes. Parents may also notice delays in milestones such as rolling, sitting or crawling, or concerns that their baby shows limited emotional responses, such as smiling or laughing, or does not settle in response to a soothing voice.
In toddlers, parents more often report behaviours that interfere with daily life, including tantrums ranging from crying to screaming, kicking, hitting, or breath-holding; food refusal; difficulties with toilet training; defiance of parental requests; and social anxiety. Developmental concerns may present as difficulties with motor coordination, speech and language, understanding, learning new skills, expressing emotions and communicating needs.
Children reach milestones in play, speech, learning and behaviour at different rates. Being slightly behind does not necessarily indicate a developmental delay. A developmental delay is diagnosed when a child consistently falls behind in acquiring age-appropriate skills.
Assessment by a paediatrician may be helpful if you are worried about your child’s behaviour or development:
Dr Manea’s Well Infant Clinics track and support your child’s development in the first year of life and offer resources on tips and activities that promote and encourage development and well-being. When concerns are reported, the assessment begins with a detailed discussion about your child’s medical background, developmental progress, behaviour and daily functioning. This includes concerns raised at home, by the wider family members or in educational settings. Dr Manea will observe and interact with your child in a calm, playful manner to facilitate the medical examination. To gain a detailed understanding of current skill levels, developmental or behavioural screening tools are usually used to support the assessment.
Further investigations or assessments will be discussed when clinically indicated, and their purpose and limitations will be clearly explained. Where additional input is required, this may involve using available online resources and guidance on monitoring progress at home, and referral to other specialist services (e.g., osteopathy, physiotherapy, dietitian, speech and language therapist, sleep specialist, neurologist, psychologist) for support or to formalise a diagnosis.
Management is individualised for each child and family and may include reassurance, practical strategies to support development and behaviour, guidance on establishing healthy routines and habits, and recommendations for additional support or therapies when appropriate. Some children benefit from ongoing review, while others require only advice and reassurance.
Follow-up is guided by the child’s needs and the family’s preferences, with an emphasis on continuity of care so that families know whom they are seeing and can be supported by clinicians familiar with their child’s history
