Dyslexia
Dyslexia, also known as reading disorder, is characterized by trouble with reading despite normal intelligence.[1] Different people are affected to varying degrees.[2] Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, reading quickly, writing words, “sounding out” words in the head, pronouncing words when reading aloud and understanding what one reads.[2][3] Often these difficulties are first noticed at school.[4] When someone who previously could read loses their ability, it is known as alexia.[2] The difficulties are involuntary and people with this disorder have a normal desire to learn.[2]
The cause of dyslexia is believed to involve both genetic and environmental factors.[4] Some cases run in families.[2] It often occurs in people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and is associated with similar difficulties with numbers.[4] It may begin in adulthood as the result of a traumatic brain injury, stroke, or dementia.[1] The underlying mechanisms are problems within the brain‘s language processing.[2] Dyslexia is diagnosed through a series of tests of memory, spelling, vision, and reading skills.[5] Dyslexia is separate from reading difficulties caused by insufficient teaching; or either hearing or vision problems.[4]
Treatment involves adjusting teaching methods to meet the person’s needs.[1] While not curing the underlying problem, it may decrease the degree of symptoms.[6] Treatments targeting vision are not effective.[7] Dyslexia is the most common learning disability,[8] affecting 3–7 % of the population;[4][9] however, up to 20% may have some degree of symptoms.[10] While dyslexia is more often diagnosed in men,[4] it has been suggested that it affects men and women equally.[8] Dyslexia occurs in all areas of the world.[4] Some believe that dyslexia should be best considered as a different way of learning, with both benefits and downsides.[11][12]
(Source: Wikipedia)
