Objectives: To test the sensitivity and specificity of the parent form of the ESSENCE-Q South Slavic language versions as a screening instrument for neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) in clinical settings. Methods: Children under the age of 6 assessed for developmental problems from seven centers in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia were included. Forty eight children had one or more NDDs, while 86 were of normal development. One parent per child completed the ESSENCE-Q with 12 items (possible scores 0-24). Results: Cronbach’s alpha for the total score was 0.91. The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.96, where an optimal cut-off ≥ 3 had sensitivity of 0.96 (95% confidence interval [CI]: [0.86, 0.99]) and specificity of 0.84 (95% CI: [0.75, 0.91]). The diagnostic accuracy was similar when screening boys and girls separately (Youden index was 0.78 and 0.79, respectively), while it was greater when screening children aged 12-36 months than children aged 37-72 months (Youden index was 0.86 and 0.57, respectively). Conclusions: The ESSENCE-Q South Slavic language versions completed by parents could be used as a screening tool to identify children with NDDs in clinical settings. The screening instrument might have greater diagnostic accuracy when screening younger than older children, but this trend should be further confirmed.
