No matter how many symptoms of APD a child may have, only careful and accurate diagnostics can determine the underlying cause.Ī multidisciplinary team approach is critical to fully assess and understand the cluster of problems exhibited by children with APD. APD cannot be diagnosed from a symptoms checklist. Therefore, we should always keep in mind that not all language and learning problems are due to APD, and all cases of APD do not lead to language and learning problems. However, it is critical to understand that these same types of symptoms may be apparent in children who do not exhibit APD. Often their performance in classes that don't rely heavily on listening is much better, and they typically are able to complete a task independently once they know what is expected of them. In school, children with APD may have difficulty with spelling, reading, and understanding information presented verbally in the classroom. Sometimes they may behave as if a hearing loss is present, often asking for repetition or clarification. For example, they may have difficulty understanding speech in noisy environments, following directions, and discriminating (or telling the difference between) similar-sounding speech sounds.
Diagnosing APDĬhildren with APD may exhibit a variety of listening and related complaints. In those cases, only careful and accurate diagnosis can assist in disentangling the relative effects of each. In some cases, however, APD may co-exist with ADHD or other disorders. As such, it is not correct to apply the label APD to these individuals, even if many of their behaviors appear very similar to those associated with APD. Finally, although the terms language processing and auditory processing sometimes are used interchangeably, it is critical to understand that they are not the same thing at all.įor many children and adults with these disorders and others-including intellectual disabilities and sensory integration dysfunction-the listening and comprehension difficulties we often see are due to the higher-order, more global or all-encompassing disorder and not to any specific deficit in the neural processing of auditory stimuli per se. However, it is the higher-order, global deficit known as autism that is the cause of their difficulties, not a specific auditory dysfunction. Similarly, children with autism may have great difficulty with spoken language comprehension. Instead, it is the attention deficit that is impeding their ability to access or use the auditory information that is coming in. For example, individuals with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) may well be poor listeners and have difficulty understanding or remembering verbal information however, their actual neural processing of auditory input in the CNS is intact. There are many disorders that can affect a person's ability to understand auditory information. To avoid confusing APD with other disorders that can affect a person's ability to attend, understand, and remember, it is important to emphasize that APD is an auditory deficit that is not the result of other higher-order cognitive, language, or related disorder. However, the CNS is vast and also is responsible for functions such as memory, attention, and language, among others. In its very broadest sense, APD refers to how the central nervous system (CNS) uses auditory information.
#AUDITORY SENSORY OVERLOAD PROFESSIONAL#
The purpose of this article is to clarify some of these key issues so that readers are better able to navigate the jungle of information available on the subject in professional and popular literature today. As a result, there are some who question the existence of APD as a distinct diagnostic entity and others who assume that the term APD is applicable to any child or adult who has difficulty listening or understanding spoken language.
/young-woman-squinting-eye-closed-hand-covering-ear-close-up-529655594-578424403df78c1e1f7c7471.jpg "auditory sensory overload")
The term auditory processing often is used loosely by individuals in many different settings to mean many different things, and the label APD has been applied (often incorrectly) to a wide variety of difficulties and disorders. Unfortunately, this increase in awareness has resulted in a plethora of misconceptions and misinformation, as well as confusion regarding just what is (and isn't) an APD, how APD is diagnosed, and methods of managing and treating the disorder. In recent years, there has been a dramatic upsurge in professional and public awareness of Auditory Processing Disorders (APD), also referred to as Central Auditory Processing Disorders (CAPD).
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