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Causes
By Mayo Clinic staffA learning disability is a condition that produces a gap between someone's ability and his or her performance. Most people with dyslexia are of average or above-average intelligence, but read at levels significantly lower than expected. Other types of learning disabilities include attention difficulties, an inability to perform well at writing skills and an inability to perform well at math skills.
The cause of dyslexia seems to be a malfunction in certain areas of the brain concerned with language. The condition frequently runs in families.
- Lyon GR. Specific language and learning disabilities. In: Kliegman RM. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.; Saunders Elsevier: 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/142934465-3/0/1608/82.html?printing=true. Accessed June 11, 2009.
- NINDS dyslexia information page. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/dyslexia/dyslexia.htm. Accessed June 11, 2009.
- Learning disabilities. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/print/sec19/ch299/ch299d.html. Accessed June 11, 2009.
- Dyslexia. National Center for Learning Disabilities. http://www.ncld.org/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=454. Accessed June 11, 2009.
- What are the signs of dyslexia? International Dyslexia Association. http://www.interdys.org/SignsofDyslexiaCombined.htm. Accessed June 11, 2009.
- Grizzle KL. Developmental dyslexia. Pediatric Clinics of North America. 2007;54:507.
- Hamilton SS. Interventions for children with reading difficulty. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed May 22, 2009.
