ABSTRACT
In this chapter learning disabilities and communication problems will be considered. The ways in which problems in these areas are classified in DSM IV and ICD-10 are set out in Figures 8.1 and 8.2. Both systems distinguish between mental retardation on the one hand and all other learning and communication problems on the other. Indeed, in both systems, mental retardation is coded on a separate axis. Both systems distinguish between specific communication disorders and other specific learning disorders associated with the development of academic and motor skills. Finally, both systems distinguish between learning problems that have been present from birth and acquired learning problems, of which those associated with head injury are probably the most important in clinical practice with children and adolescents. Finer distinctions made within the ICD and DSM systems for the subtyping of learning and communication problems will be discussed in subsequent sections of this chapter.
