It is the desire of every parent to have a normal child both physically as well as mentally. Many parents are gripped with anxiety as they watch their young ones undergo growth and development. As a parent or guardian in Portsmouth, PA, it is important to note that things will not always turn out as planned. Indeed, there a good number of individuals with intellectual disabilities. Commonly, this problem will be identified before the age of eighteen.
The condition is also called mental retardation in some quarters but this term is slowly becoming obsolete. It may be seen in isolation but a number of people have it coexisting with physical abnormalities. This has been observed with conditions such as foetal alcohol syndrome and Down syndrome. Risk factors that have been identified may be biomedical, social, educational or behavioural. Infections associated with pregnancy and the perinatal period is particularly harmful.
One of the biggest challenges that affect these people is the difficulty in learning new things. They tend to take a long time to grasp issues. For this reason, one needs to have a lot of patience when teaching them. There is a need to repeat things several times for the child to understand. As a result, many of the affected children have to be enrolled into special schools where they will be given individualised attention.
While some of the cases are obvious from the onset, there are many others that have rather subtle features. It is important that the affected child is reviewed by a psychiatrist for a proper diagnosis to be made. There are three main things that must be present for a proper diagnosis to be made: an onset at an age of less than 18, accompanying intellectual limitations and the presence of compromised adaptive behaviour.
Adaptive behaviour encompasses three main areas. There are conceptual skills, social skills and practical skills. Conceptual skills refer to those related to language and literacy, time, self direction and number concepts. Social skills revolve around interpersonal relationships. They are the skills that help us form friendships and to solve conflicts. Practical skills are necessary for daily living and personal living. The affected persons are put into different groups depending in the extent of limitation.
Since there are different degrees of limitation, classification is often necessary to help in instituting the appropriate form of management. The assessment of an individual should take into account their immediate community. The intellectual functioning of the individual must be below that of the surrounding population for a positive diagnosis to be made.
Research has shown that there is room for prevention of this condition albeit to a small extent. The general approach is to target the main causes or risk factors. For instance, couples who intend to get married should undergo genetic counselling particularly in cases where there is a positive family history. Robust social support systems help in the reduction of incidences.
Intellectual disability is said to be the most common form of developmental disabilities all over the world. The limitation presents a huge challenge to both the affected children and their parents. When timely intervention is instituted, the affected persons can be trained to lead near normal lives. It should be noted that this condition is not a disease or a mental illness.
The condition is also called mental retardation in some quarters but this term is slowly becoming obsolete. It may be seen in isolation but a number of people have it coexisting with physical abnormalities. This has been observed with conditions such as foetal alcohol syndrome and Down syndrome. Risk factors that have been identified may be biomedical, social, educational or behavioural. Infections associated with pregnancy and the perinatal period is particularly harmful.
One of the biggest challenges that affect these people is the difficulty in learning new things. They tend to take a long time to grasp issues. For this reason, one needs to have a lot of patience when teaching them. There is a need to repeat things several times for the child to understand. As a result, many of the affected children have to be enrolled into special schools where they will be given individualised attention.
While some of the cases are obvious from the onset, there are many others that have rather subtle features. It is important that the affected child is reviewed by a psychiatrist for a proper diagnosis to be made. There are three main things that must be present for a proper diagnosis to be made: an onset at an age of less than 18, accompanying intellectual limitations and the presence of compromised adaptive behaviour.
Adaptive behaviour encompasses three main areas. There are conceptual skills, social skills and practical skills. Conceptual skills refer to those related to language and literacy, time, self direction and number concepts. Social skills revolve around interpersonal relationships. They are the skills that help us form friendships and to solve conflicts. Practical skills are necessary for daily living and personal living. The affected persons are put into different groups depending in the extent of limitation.
Since there are different degrees of limitation, classification is often necessary to help in instituting the appropriate form of management. The assessment of an individual should take into account their immediate community. The intellectual functioning of the individual must be below that of the surrounding population for a positive diagnosis to be made.
Research has shown that there is room for prevention of this condition albeit to a small extent. The general approach is to target the main causes or risk factors. For instance, couples who intend to get married should undergo genetic counselling particularly in cases where there is a positive family history. Robust social support systems help in the reduction of incidences.
Intellectual disability is said to be the most common form of developmental disabilities all over the world. The limitation presents a huge challenge to both the affected children and their parents. When timely intervention is instituted, the affected persons can be trained to lead near normal lives. It should be noted that this condition is not a disease or a mental illness.
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