AUDITORY PROCESSING DISORDER

SYMPTOMS

Auditory processing disorder can impair a child’s ability to speak, read, write, and spell. Most children with such disorders have trouble formulating a response to persons who are talking to them.

APD might affect a child’s social growth; this may give him a hard time interacting with people.

A child with APD might also find it hard to:

• Remember verbal instructions
• Follow conversations
• Identify the origin of a sound
• Listen to music
• Understand what people say, especially if there is more than one person who is talking

TYPES

Other common types of leg ulcer include:

• Arterial leg ulcers
• Diabetic leg ulcers
• Malignant leg ulcers
• Traumatic leg ulcers
• Vasculitic leg ulcers

Ulcers in the foot are usually caused by diabetes.

SYMPTOMS

Itching, pain, and swelling in the affected leg are characteristic symptoms of a venous leg ulcer.

Discoloration, hardening of the skin around the ulcer, and presence of a foul-smelling discharge may also be present when you have a venous leg ulcer.

If you have a venous leg ulcer, you may exhibit the following conditions:

• discoloration and darkening of the skin around the ulcer
• swollen ankles
• red, flaky, scaly and itchy skin on your legs
• swollen and enlarged veins on your legs
• hardened skin around the ulcer, which may make your leg feel hard
• a heavy feeling in your legs
• an unpleasant and foul-smelling discharge from the ulcer
• aching or swelling in your legs

Signs of an infection

Opportunistic pathogens could cause secondary bacterial infections due to the ulcer. 

Symptoms of an infected leg ulcer may include:

• a green or unpleasant discharge coming from the ulcer
• fever
• redness and swelling of the skin around the ulcer
• worsening pain
• an unpleasant smell coming from the ulcer

DIAGNOSIS

Doctors usually require you to undergo hearing tests to see if issues are caused by hearing loss. Only an audiologist or hearing specialist can diagnose APD.

A series of advanced listening tests are recommended by your audiologist, to determine how you would respond to different sounds when you hear them. Painless electrodes may also be used to attach to your ears and head to measure how your brain would react to sounds.

TREATMENT

Treatments for APD are specifically designed for each person only. As of now, there’s no exact cure for it. However, some treatments usually focus on the following areas:

• Speech Therapy may help the patient recognize sounds and improve their conversational skills.
• Reading Support focuses on areas where the patient is having trouble.
• Developing the child’s other learning skills like memory and problem-solving.
• Classroom support: Using frequency modulators to help your child hear the teacher. Teachers could also suggest ways to help the patient with APD by limiting background noise and making him sit in the front row.

Limiting the use of the TV, stereo and other noisy electronics might help also. A little modification in your home would be beneficial to the person with APD.