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Learning Disability and Associated Conditions
Some people with a learning disability may also have been diagnosed with associated conditions and be considered to have a dual diagnosis. ID Support staff teams have knowledge and experience of supporting people with a number of conditions or syndromes. ID as a training provider will also develop training programmes that are specific to each person's additional needs, ensuring that every employee has the relevant knowledge required to provide the best support.
Detailed below are descriptions of some of the conditions that ID have knowledge and experience of:-
Autism and Asperger Syndrome
Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with, and relates to, other people. It also affects how they make sense of the world around them.
It is a spectrum condition, which means that, while all people with autism share certain difficulties, their condition will affect them in different ways. Some people with autism are able to live relatively independent lives but others may have accompanying learning disabilities and need a lifetime of specialist support. People with autism may also experience over- or under-sensitivity to sounds, touch, tastes, smells, light or colours.
Asperger syndrome is a form of autism. People with Asperger syndrome are often of average or above average intelligence. They have fewer problems with speech but may still have difficulties with understanding and processing language.
Cerebral Palsy
Cerebral Palsy is a group of permanent disorders of the development of movement and posture, causing activity limitations that are attributed to non-progressive disturbances that occurred in the developing fetal or infant brain. The motor disorders of cerebral palsy are often accompanied by disturbances of sensation, perception, cognition, communication and behaviour, by epilepsy and by secondary musculoskeletal problems.
Children with cerebral palsy have difficulties in controlling muscles and movements as they grow and develop. The nature and extent of these difficulties may change as children grow but cerebral palsy itself is not progressive: the injury or impairment in the brain does not change. However, the effects of the brain injury on the body may change over time for better or worse.
Depending on the precise area of the brain that is affected, there may be associated difficulties which become obvious during development; for example, in vision, hearing, learning and behaviour.
Down's Syndrome
Down's syndrome is a genetic condition known as trisomy, where a person inherits an extra copy of one chromosome. People with the syndrome have three copies of chromosome 21 rather than the usual two. This additional genetic material changes the finely tuned balance of the body and results in characteristic physical and intellectual features.
It's not known why this abnormality occurs, but it affects around one in 1,000 babies born in the UK - about 750 babies a year - and is the most common inherited cause of learning disability.
People with Down's syndrome have varying degrees of learning disability, which may range from moderate to severe. Autistic spectrum disorders are also more common.
Fragile X Syndrome
In Fragile X Syndrome, one of the genes on the X chromosome is faulty. For most people this gene makes a protein necessary for brain development, but when it's faulty little or none of the protein is made. Boys are usually more severely affected as they have only one X chromosome.
The main impact for people who have Fragile X Syndrome is intellectual impairment. This can range from very minor impairment, in which someone may have a normal IQ and show no sign of Fragile X Syndrome, to a person who has a severe learning disability. How badly someone is affected depends on the degree of change in the gene.
There are often emotional and behavioural problems which may include hyperactivity, impulsivity, attention deficit disorder, anxiety and mood swings.
Angelman Syndrome
Angelman syndrome is a rare condition which used to be called the "happy puppet" syndrome because the children behave as though they are a "puppet-on-a-string". However, Angelman syndrome is the name used today.
People who have Angelman Syndrome have learning disabilities and speech delay that are usually severe. 7 out of 10 people with Angelman Syndrome have epilepsy. They may have a characteristic facial appearance, and a happy mood with sudden bursts of laughter. Many children also have a fascination for water, and usually running water. The condition is due to an abnormality on chromosome 15. The condition is usually diagnosed between four and 10 years of age, but sometimes earlier.
Cri du Chat
Cri du Chat syndrome is a relatively rare chromosome disorder affecting approximately 1 in 37,000-50,000 live births. The exact sex ratio is not known although reports indicate that females outnumber males by 2 to 1. The syndrome is known to result from a deletion from the short arm of chromosome 5 and represents one of most common deletion syndromes in humans. Cri du chat is a French term (cat-cry or call of the cat) referring to the characteristic cat-like cry of children with the syndrome.
People who have Cri du Chat syndrome tend to have had poor growth as a child. They may have severe cognitive, speech, and motor delays and also behavioural problems such as hyperactivity, aggression, and repetitive movements.
Prader-Willi Syndrome
Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) is described as a condition in which people have unique and clearly definable features. These are - weak muscle tone, central nervous system and endocrine gland dysfunction resulting in varying degrees of learning disability, short stature, poor emotional and social development and obesity caused by excessive appetite and overeating.
Many people with PWS also exhibit characteristic facial and other physical features. These include: almond-shaped eyes, a narrow forehead, a down-turned mouth with a triangular-shaped upper lip, and small hands and feet.
As adults, people with PWS have varying abilities in attaining independence, although all will need some form of support or monitoring to help with controlling their food intake, and thus their weight. Despite the fact that many individuals have the intellectual and physical ability to work, they are usually ill-equipped on an emotional and social level to deal with the stresses and demands of the ordinary workplace. However, they can make a positive contribution to society in many ways and may be involved in voluntary work, craft work, or have a part-time job.
Rett Syndrome
Rett syndrome is a rare neurological disorder affecting mainly females and very few males. Although present at birth, it is usually undetected until major regression occurs at around one year of age, when children will lose acquired skills - this can be accompanied by distress and anxiety.
People with Rett syndrome have profound and multiple physical and learning disabilities and are totally reliant on others for support throughout their lives. As with any disability, the impact of the condition is not only upon the child but upon family and carers too. Rett UK seeks to support the person with Rett syndrome and the family together. They are all ‘living with Rett syndrome’. There are substantial communication and mobility issues for people with Rett syndrome. Most will not speak and, by adulthood, only 50% will walk. Epilepsy, chronic spinal curvature and breathing and feeding difficulties are also common features. However, it is more increasingly apparent that people with Rett syndrome are living into their 50s and beyond.