Dyslexia: Signs, Speech Therapy Diagnosis and Rehabilitation

What is Dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a specific learning disorder affecting reading acquisition. It affects approximately 5-10% of school-age children and often persists into adulthood. It is neither an intelligence problem nor a lack of motivation: it is a neurodevelopmental disorder affecting written word decoding.

Three main forms are distinguished:

• Phonological dyslexia: difficulty converting letters to sounds. The child struggles with pseudo-words and new words.
• Surface dyslexia: difficulty recognizing irregular words. Reading is slow but basic decoding is preserved.
• Mixed dyslexia: both pathways affected, the most severe form.

Warning Signs

Before first grade (5-6 years)

• Difficulty identifying rhymes
• Frequent confusion between similar sounds
• Delayed alphabet learning
• Family history of dyslexia

In primary school (6-10 years)

• Slow, choppy reading
• Frequent decoding errors
• Reading comprehension difficulties
• Very poor spelling

Speech Therapy Assessment

The diagnosis is based on a comprehensive speech therapy assessment including standardized reading tests, spelling evaluation, phonological awareness, working memory, and oral language verification.

With Cabdivin, each assessment step is structured with pre-configured templates. Scores are automatically calculated and compared to age-based norms.

Rehabilitation

Rehabilitation adapts to the patient's profile and typically involves 1-2 sessions per week for 1-3 years depending on severity.