Health Topics for Child Health and Development

UI Children's Hospital

UI Family Care Centers

Divisions Within the Department of Pediatrics

Iowa Registry for Congenital and Inherited Disorders

Dyslexia

Does your child reverse letters or numbers when reading or writing? Are simple words misspelled? Is punctuation ignored when reading out loud? These may, in a school-aged child, indicate a reading disorder called dyslexia. Children who have dyslexia are unable to understand the letters or words that they see. The disorder is not a visual problem. The brain is unable to translate images received from the eyes into meaningful language.

Dyslexia occurs more often in boys than in girls. Family history often shows that one or both parents, an uncle, or a cousin has dyslexia. It can initially be noticed as a delay in the age at which a child begins to read. The key symptom is reading at a level that is far below other children of the same age. The child is normal in other school subjects and areas of ability.

When dyslexia is undetected and untreated, it may lead to the following:

• low self-esteem
• school failure
• behavior problems
• delinquency
• aggression and
• withdrawal from friends, parents, and teachers

Common symptoms to look for in dyslexic children include:

• guessing words
• rotating numbers and letters, such as "9" and "6" or "b" and "d"
• changing the order of letters in words
• not looking at all the letters in a word
• losing the place while reading
• forgetting common words learned each day
• reading word for word
• adding, deleting, or changing words in a sentence or
• reading slowly

Dyslexia is confirmed by a series of tests. Medical and psychological tests are used to determine a suitable teaching program. Methods that emphasize the senses, including hearing, vision, and touch are used to improve reading skills. Many unproven treatments for dyslexia exist. Diets that eliminate sugars or dyes, or drugs used for hyperactivity do not seem to assist in decreasing the symptoms of dyslexia. Some children outgrow the problem as they mature.

Last Reviewed 2005

Disclaimer: This content is reviewed periodically and is subject to change as new health information becomes available. The information provided is intended to be informative and educational and is not a replacement for professional medical evaluation, advice, diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional.

HIL File CHIL3062.rf2 VRS# 7727 Data Version 7.0 Copyright 1998 McKesson Health Solutions LLC. All rights reserved.