Dyslexia pathophysiology

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Please help WikiDoc by adding more content here. It's easy! Click here to learn about editing.

Dyslexia Microchapters
Home
Patient Information
Overview
Historical Perspective
Classification
Pathophysiology
Causes
Differentiating Dyslexia from other Diseases
Epidemiology and Demographics
Risk Factors
Natural History, Complications and Prognosis
Diagnosis
History and Symptoms
Physical Examination
Laboratory Findings
CT
MRI
Other Imaging Findings
Other Diagnostic Studies
Treatment
Medical Therapy
Surgery
Primary Prevention
Secondary Prevention
Cost-Effectiveness of Therapy
Future or Investigational Therapies
Case Studies
Case #1
Dyslexia pathophysiology On the Web
Most recent articles
Most cited articles
Review articles
Programs
Powerpoint slides
Images
American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Dyslexia pathophysiology All Images X-rays Echo & Ultrasound CT Images MRI
Ongoing Trials at Clinical Trials.gov
US National Guidelines Clearinghouse
NICE Guidance
FDA on Dyslexia pathophysiology
CDC on Dyslexia pathophysiology
Dyslexia pathophysiology in the news
Blogs onDyslexia pathophysiology
Directions to Hospitals Treating Dyslexia
Risk calculators and risk factors forDyslexia pathophysiology

Pathophysiology

Associated Conditions

Dyslexia is a learning disability. It has many underlying causes that are believed to be a brain-based condition that influences the ability to read written language. It is identified in individuals who fail to learn to read in the absence of a verbal or nonverbal intellectual impairment, sensory deficit (e.g., a visual deficit or hearing loss), pervasive developmental deficit or a frank neurological impairment.

The following conditions may also be contributory or overlapping factors, or underlying cause of the dyslexic symptoms as they can lead to difficulty reading:

• Auditory processing disorder is a condition that affects the ability to encode auditory information. It can lead to problems with auditory working memory and auditory sequencing. Many dyslexics have auditory processing problems including history of auditory reversals. Auditory processing disorder is recognized as one of the major causes of dyslexia.
• Cluttering is a speech fluency disorder involving both the rate and rhythm of speech, and resulting in impaired speech intelligibility. Speech is erratic and dysrhythmic, consisting of rapid and jerky spurts that usually involve faulty phrasing. The personality of the clutterer bears striking resemblance to the personalities of those with learning disabilities.
• Dyspraxia is a neurological condition characterized by a marked difficulty in carrying out routine tasks involving balance, fine-motor control, and kinesthetic coordination. Problems with short term memory and organization are typical of dyspraxics. This is most common in dyslexics who also have attention deficit disorder.
• Verbal dyspraxia is a neurological condition characterized by marked difficulty in the use of speech sounds, which is the result of an immaturity in the speech production area of the brain.
• Dysgraphia is a disorder which expresses itself primarily during writing or typing, although in some cases it may also affect eye-hand coordination in such direction or sequence oriented processes as tying knots or carrying out a repetitive task. Dysgraphia is distinct from Dyspraxia in that the person may have the word to be written or the proper order of steps in mind clearly, but carries the sequence out in the wrong order.
• Dyscalculia is a neurological condition characterized by a problem with learning fundamentals and one or more of the basic numerical skills. Often people with this condition can understand very complex mathematical concepts and principles but have difficulty processing formulas and even basic addition and subtraction.
• Scotopic sensitivity syndrome, also known as Irlen Syndrome, is a term used to describe sensitivity to certain wavelengths of light which interfere with proper visual processing. See also Orthoscopics and asfedia.