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Table of Contents

Types

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Diagnosis

Causes

Treatment

Coping

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An intellectual disability is aneurodevelopmental conditionthat develops in childhood. It affects your capacity to learn and retain new information, and it also affects everyday behavior such as social skills and hygiene routines. People with this condition experience significant limitations with intellectual functioning and developing adaptive skills like social and life skills.

An IQ test determines whether a person has an intellectual disability.IQ scores lower than 70indicate an intellectual disability. The severity of the condition can range from mild to profound.

Children with a mild intellectual disability can live a fully functioning life with proper support. However, children with a severe intellectual disability require more extensive and constant support. This condition used to be referred to as mental retardation, which took on a negative connotation in society and was replaced with intellectual disability. This term is less offensive and communicates the severity of the condition.

Intellectual disability is one of the most commondevelopmental disabilitiesin children. It’s estimated that around 6.5 million Americans have an intellectual disability.

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Types of Intellectual Disabilities

There is a range of conditions typically classified as intellectual disability. Some of the most common include:

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Symptoms of an Intellectual Disability

Symptoms of intellectual disability will typically start to surface in early childhood. In some cases, these signs might be physical. You might notice your child has an unusually large or small head, abnormalities with their hands or feet, or other physical differences. However, this isn’t always the case.

Children who appear physically healthy and normal could also have an intellectual disability. Children who have severe intellectual disability might begin to exhibit symptoms at an earlier age than those with a milder form. If you are worried your child might have an intellectual disability, here are some of the early signs to look out for:

Borderline Intellectual Functioning Overview

Identifying an Intellectual Disability

To diagnose an intellectual disability, the following criteria must be met:

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Causes of Intellectual Disabilities

Anything that interferes with the proper growth and development of a child could cause an intellectual disability. It can be challenging to identify the specific cause of your child’s intellectual disability in some cases. Several culprits could be responsible for the development of an intellectual disability. Some of the most common include:

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Treatment for an Intellectual Disability

There is no one-fix treatment for intellectual disability. The condition is a lifelong one that will need continuous management. The key to proper treatment is early intervention. Getting an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan once you notice the condition’s early symptoms is crucial.

Treatment comes in the form of support and care to improve the daily functioning of a person living with the condition. There is presently no cure for intellectual disability. The main aim of treatment is to improve the daily functioning of a person with this condition.

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Coping With an Intellectual Disability

It’s essential to remember that children with intellectual disabilities have the same needs as any other child. Keeping them amongst their peers and exposing them to regular childhood activities is vital for their development. Parents of children with intellectual disabilities often feel the need to keep them secluded to protect them from ridicule or bullying. However, this doesn’t help with the development of their social skills.

If you are the parent of a child living with an intellectual disability, here are some things you could do to make sure your child is living a healthy and fully functioning life:

11 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.About intellectual and developmental disabilities(IDDs).Boat TF, Wu JT, Disorders C to E the SSIDP for C with M, et al.Clinical Characteristics of Intellectual Disabilities.National Academies Press (US); 2015.National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS).What is an intellectual disability.Stefanovic S, DeMarco BA, Underwood A, Williams KR, Bassell GJ, Mihailescu MR.Fragile X mental retardation protein interactions with a G quadruplex structure in the 3'-untranslated region of NR2B mRNA.Mol Biosyst. 2015;11(12):3222-3230. doi:10.1039/c5mb00423cCleveland Clinic.Fragile x syndrome: diagnosis, symptoms & treatment.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Facts About Down Syndrome.Elena G, Bruna C, Benedetta M, Stefania DC, Giuseppe C.Prader-willi syndrome: clinical aspects.Journal of Obesity. 2012;2012:1-13. doi:10.1155/2012/473941Mukherjee RAS.Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: an overview.Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 2006;99(6):298-302. doi:10.1258/jrsm.99.6.298MSD Manual Professional Edition.Intellectual disability - pediatrics.Shree A, Shukla PC.Intellectual Disability: Definition, classification, causes and characteristics.Lear Commun. 2016;7(1):9. doi:10.5958/2231-458X.2016.00002.6MSD Manual Consumer Version.Intellectual disability - children’s health issues.

11 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.About intellectual and developmental disabilities(IDDs).Boat TF, Wu JT, Disorders C to E the SSIDP for C with M, et al.Clinical Characteristics of Intellectual Disabilities.National Academies Press (US); 2015.National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS).What is an intellectual disability.Stefanovic S, DeMarco BA, Underwood A, Williams KR, Bassell GJ, Mihailescu MR.Fragile X mental retardation protein interactions with a G quadruplex structure in the 3'-untranslated region of NR2B mRNA.Mol Biosyst. 2015;11(12):3222-3230. doi:10.1039/c5mb00423cCleveland Clinic.Fragile x syndrome: diagnosis, symptoms & treatment.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Facts About Down Syndrome.Elena G, Bruna C, Benedetta M, Stefania DC, Giuseppe C.Prader-willi syndrome: clinical aspects.Journal of Obesity. 2012;2012:1-13. doi:10.1155/2012/473941Mukherjee RAS.Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: an overview.Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 2006;99(6):298-302. doi:10.1258/jrsm.99.6.298MSD Manual Professional Edition.Intellectual disability - pediatrics.Shree A, Shukla PC.Intellectual Disability: Definition, classification, causes and characteristics.Lear Commun. 2016;7(1):9. doi:10.5958/2231-458X.2016.00002.6MSD Manual Consumer Version.Intellectual disability - children’s health issues.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.About intellectual and developmental disabilities(IDDs).Boat TF, Wu JT, Disorders C to E the SSIDP for C with M, et al.Clinical Characteristics of Intellectual Disabilities.National Academies Press (US); 2015.National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS).What is an intellectual disability.Stefanovic S, DeMarco BA, Underwood A, Williams KR, Bassell GJ, Mihailescu MR.Fragile X mental retardation protein interactions with a G quadruplex structure in the 3'-untranslated region of NR2B mRNA.Mol Biosyst. 2015;11(12):3222-3230. doi:10.1039/c5mb00423cCleveland Clinic.Fragile x syndrome: diagnosis, symptoms & treatment.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Facts About Down Syndrome.Elena G, Bruna C, Benedetta M, Stefania DC, Giuseppe C.Prader-willi syndrome: clinical aspects.Journal of Obesity. 2012;2012:1-13. doi:10.1155/2012/473941Mukherjee RAS.Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: an overview.Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 2006;99(6):298-302. doi:10.1258/jrsm.99.6.298MSD Manual Professional Edition.Intellectual disability - pediatrics.Shree A, Shukla PC.Intellectual Disability: Definition, classification, causes and characteristics.Lear Commun. 2016;7(1):9. doi:10.5958/2231-458X.2016.00002.6MSD Manual Consumer Version.Intellectual disability - children’s health issues.

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.About intellectual and developmental disabilities(IDDs).

Boat TF, Wu JT, Disorders C to E the SSIDP for C with M, et al.Clinical Characteristics of Intellectual Disabilities.National Academies Press (US); 2015.

National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS).What is an intellectual disability.

Stefanovic S, DeMarco BA, Underwood A, Williams KR, Bassell GJ, Mihailescu MR.Fragile X mental retardation protein interactions with a G quadruplex structure in the 3'-untranslated region of NR2B mRNA.Mol Biosyst. 2015;11(12):3222-3230. doi:10.1039/c5mb00423c

Cleveland Clinic.Fragile x syndrome: diagnosis, symptoms & treatment.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Facts About Down Syndrome.

Elena G, Bruna C, Benedetta M, Stefania DC, Giuseppe C.Prader-willi syndrome: clinical aspects.Journal of Obesity. 2012;2012:1-13. doi:10.1155/2012/473941

Mukherjee RAS.Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: an overview.Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 2006;99(6):298-302. doi:10.1258/jrsm.99.6.298

MSD Manual Professional Edition.Intellectual disability - pediatrics.

Shree A, Shukla PC.Intellectual Disability: Definition, classification, causes and characteristics.Lear Commun. 2016;7(1):9. doi:10.5958/2231-458X.2016.00002.6

MSD Manual Consumer Version.Intellectual disability - children’s health issues.

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