The recent history of diagnostic systems in paediatric neurology is one of increasing differentiation between the signs and symptoms of disorders such as autism, learning disability, and attention deficit disorder. It is refreshing, therefore, to read an account that challenges established practice and emphasises the common evolutionary and neural bases of these problems. This book amasses an impressive array of biochemical, neural, behavioural, and clinical evidence to argue that the development of the human motor system is closely linked with that of "higher-order" systems regulating cognition, language, and social behaviour, and that some form of abnormal motor functioning is implicated in most developmental disorders. The implication is that treatments for neurobehavioural disorders should develop strategies to enhance comorbid motor difficulties.
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