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What's the earliest age one can be tested for learning disorders
and can these disorders be identified and effectively treated in
adulthood?
The
exact age for a given individual varies, depending upon type and
severity; i.e., language problems that are quite intense can be
identified as early as 18 months and motor coordination problems
by age two. But higher order skill problems in reading, arithmetic,
spelling and penmanship may be more difficult to ascertain before
the age of five, but are reasonably reliably identified between
the ages of five and seven years. In adulthood, it is possible to
identify any of the developmental disorders and to verify their
biological nature. Encouragingly, these developmental disorders,
the majority of which seem to be treatable in childhood, remain
treatable through the lifespan of the person unless there has been
some unusual injury or illness that may have damaged the nervous
system. Developmental disorders of reading, attention, math and
nonverbal communication are all potentially treatable throughout
the lifespan of the individual. Dosages and agents change with age,
and the prognosis is best when the severity is mild and when the
disorder is not multiple; i.e., not several different types of learning
or attention problems.
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