Auditory Processing Disorder
A child may get a thumbs-up approval from the specialist that their hearing is “perfectly normal”, however why does he or she still not understand what is heard and is not able to apply spoken information to everyday tasks. This scenario is characteristic of someone with Auditory Processing Disorder, or APD.
Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) is a disorder in which the person displays normal hearing, however the information that is heard does not get correctly processed and coordinated in the brain.
According to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA, 1996;2005), APD is a deficiency in the perceptual processing of auditory information in the central nervous system. In this disorder, there is a disruption of the electrical flow of auditory information in the transfer process to the specific part of the brain in which it was intended. Several known causes for APD are lead poisoning, traumatic brain injury, or frequent ear infections during the first two years of a child’s life, however sometimes the exact known causation is undetermined.
Some of the most commonly recognized symptoms of APD are:
- Poor listening skills
- Poor receptive and expressive language abilities
- Difficulty following sequential instructions
- Problems remembering what is said
- Frequent requests for information to be repeated
- Problem in multi-tasking
- Delayed responds to verbal information
- Poor reading, spelling, and vocabulary skills
Characteristics of APD can easily be confused with those of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit – Hyperactivity Disorder (ADD/ADHD). In fact, sometimes children are misdiagnosed with ADD rather then with the appropriate diagnosis of Auditory Processing Disorder (APD). In some limited situations, both disorders do coexist. Behaviors or symptoms that can be found in either ADD/ADHD or APD are, but are not limited to:
- Is easily distracted
- Has difficulty in following directions
- Is disorganized and forgetful
- Demonstrates poor listening skills
- Displays poor academic performance
- Exhibits behavior problems
- Easily loses things
Although symptoms for both ADD/ADHD and APD can mirror each other, the causation and treatment are generally much different. Treatment for ADD/ADHD is generally that of medication to improve chemical imbalances or deficits in the brain. Treatment for APD, however, is provided by various treatment strategies and not by pharmaceutical intervention. The use of auditory trainers, modifications of the affected person’s environment, auditory memory enhancement techniques, and auditory integration training programs have been useful in the treatment of APD.
The Therapy Group in comprised of professionals with specific expertise in recognizing the subtle differences between ADD/ADHD and Auditory Processing Disorders. Our programs have been exceedingly successful in treating each of these conditions.
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