Intellectual disability

**Intellectual disability** is a problem with the brain. People affected by it may have thinking skills below a normal person of their age group; because of this, they often have trouble with getting through daily life, without the help of others. The condition is also known as **intellectual developmental disability**, or **general learning disability**. It used to be called **mental retardation** but this term is not used very much any more. It is classified as a learning disability. Intellectual disability becomes easy to find in childhood. There are a number of conditions that show as intellectual disability. 

There are two main forms: In one form, the disability occurs together with other healh issues (or syndromes), in the other it occurs on its own.

## Signs and symptoms 
 with Down syndrome]]
To have an intellectual disability, a person must: 
* Have an intelligence quotient (IQ) score of less than 70 (this is just over two people in a hundred) and 
* Have trouble with parts of daily life.

### Types of intellectual disabilities 
There are two major types of intellectual disability.

The first is *syndromic intellectual disability*. This means that the person has a syndrome that causes intellectual disability, as well as medical problems and other problems. Down syndrome and fetal alcohol syndrome are two examples of syndromic intellectual disabilities.

The second is *non-syndromic intellectual disability*. This means that the intellectual disability is not a part of a syndrome.

### Levels of intellectual disability 
There are three levels of intellectual disability, based on how severe a person's disability is:
* The first and most common is *mild intellectual disability*. A person with mild intellectual disability can usually do skills without help from other people, but may need help with things like paying taxes.
* The second level is moderate intellectual disability. Someone with moderate intellectual disability has an IQ between 40 and 55. They cannot live by themselves, but can learn to do basic tasks.
* The third level is severe intellectual disability. Someone with severe intellectual disability needs a lot of help and can only do simple things.
Mild intellectual disability may not be noticed until a child starts school. Moderate and severe intellectual disability can be seen before a child starts school.

## Epidemiology 
Intellectual disability affects about 2 to 3% of the general population. Seventy-five to ninety percent of the affected people have mild intellectual disability. Cases of unknown cause affect about 95 million people .
The top three most common causes of intellectual disability are Down syndrome, DiGeorge syndrome, and fetal alcohol syndrome.

### Iodine deficiency 
Iodine deficiency (not having enough iodine in the body) can lead to several medical issues, including intellectual disability.  The most common way to prevent this is by adding iodine to salt.  This is a much more common problem in developing countries.

## Diagnosis 
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In the DSM, there are three requirements a person has to meet in order to be diagnosed with an intellectual disability.

### Low intelligence quotient (IQ) 
First, the person must have a low intelligence quotient (IQ). IQ is measured with an IQ test.

If the person has an IQ of below 70, they *may* have an intellectual disability. However, they must still meet the other two requirements to be diagnosed with an intellectual disability.

### Trouble with daily activities 
Second, to qualify for an intellectual disability, a person must have trouble in more than one area of normal daily activities. These activities are often called "adaptive behaviors" or "activities of daily living (ADLs)."   Some examples of adaptive behavior are:
* Getting dressed
* Using the bathroom
* Eating and drinking
* Being able to have a conversation
* Acting properly in different situations
To see if a child is having trouble with these, a doctor will talk to people who know the child, and will watch the child's behavior.

### Beginning in childhood 
The final requirement is that the symptoms of intellectual disability have to begin in childhood or adolescence. If the issues do not start at a young age, they are probably caused by a different illness of the brain.

## Management 
There is currently no cure for intellectual disability. Those affected can learn to cope and do many things, if they get enough support and are taught well. There are many places around the world for someone with intellectual disability to get help. These places, such as group homes, can take care of people with intellectual disabilities, as well as help them find jobs, find a house of their own, or help them take care of their children.

There are some different ways for people with intellectual disability and those around them to learn how to help the person with the disability. One kind is psychosocial treatment. This is meant for very young children. Psychosocial treatment helps them learn basic skills and increase learning over their lifetime. Another kind is behavioral treatment. This is meant to help young people, but can be used for adults as well. Behavior treatment helps teach language skills as well as social skills like sharing or following instructions. A third kind of help is cognitive-behavioral treatment. This is a combination of the previous two treatments. Cognitive-behavioral therapy helps children with intellectual disability both learn skills and learn how to plan ahead. Another type of help a person with intellectual disability can get is family-oriented help. Family-oriented help focuses on teaching family members how to help the person in their family with intellectual disability.

Many people with an intellectual disability have other health problems, for which they will be given specific drugs. As an example, autistic children with developmental delay may use anti-psychotics or mood stabilizers to help with behavior. Giving drugs to intellectually disabled people needs to be monitored; side-effects often occur, and are wrongly diagnosed as problems with behavior or as psychiatric problems.

## History 
People have had intellectual disability throughout history. People with intellectual disability have had a lot of trouble in the past. The oldest idea of where intellectual disability came from was in ancient Greece. Hippocrates thought that intellectual disability was caused by an issue with the four humors. For several hundred years in Europe, churches took care of people with intellectual disabilities. In the 17th century, Thomas Willis suggested that intellectual disability was a disease caused by issues with the structure of the brain. In the 18th and 19th centuries, people with intellectual disabilities were put in asylums. The asylums would give them basics like food and shelter, but were not always good to the people in them. In the early 20th century, people with intellectual disability were made to not be able to have children and could not marry. It was thought that this would reduce the amount of intellectual disabilities in the future.

The dignity and human rights of people with intellectual disability are protected by the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as well as other disabilities and equally like other persons without disabilities.

## References