User:GhostRiver/dyscalculia

Classification
Historically, dyscalculia has been divided into developmental and acquired forms. Developmental dyscalculia begins in early childhood, while acquired dyscalculia occurs subsequent to a cerebral trauma, such as a stroke. Acquired dyscalculia is commonly referred to as acalculia, while the term dyscalculia typically refers to developmental disturbances in calculation. Consequently, this article will refer primarily to developmental dyscalculia, which, despite similarities in symptoms, has a different mechanism of action and requires different assessment strategies and treatment approaches compared to acalculia. The term dyscalculia is also used synonymously with the terms mathematical disability and mathematical learning disability (MLD), but diverges from mathmatical difficulties in its specificity. While dyscalculia is a specific type of learning disability, the latter term simply refers to poor mathematical achievement, without specifying the underlying causes.

Signs and symptoms
Dyscalculia generally involves difficulty both in learning and remembering mathematical facts and in executing mathematical procedures, with the latter causing more significant impairment.

Causes

 * Risk factors, triggers, genetics, virology, spread

Management
The most salient means of treating and managing dyscalculia is through the use of symptom-specific interventions, typically regular reinforcement with mathematical tasks. These specific interventions vary by the presence of comorbid disorders such as ADHD and with age group, although treatment is more effective when started early. Non-symptom-specific treatments, such as tasks designed to improve working memory, are less effective in improving dyscalculic function.

Prognosis
Although the long-term prognosis of dyscalculia has not been sufficiently examined, certain studies suggest that, while first- and second-grade children with dyscalculia show significant improvement in their arithmetic ability, their overall mathematical achievement remains poor. Additionally, 47% of children diagnosed with dyscalculia by fifth grade will continue to exhibit symptoms into early adolescence, independent of socioeconomic status, sex, comorbid disorders, and educational interventions.

Epidemiology
Unlike other learning disabilities, which tend to be more prevalent in males than females, dyscalculia seems to manifest equally between the sexes.

Society and culture
Among celebrities, both actress Mary Tyler Moore and singer Cher have been professionally diagnosed with dyscalculia. Moore struggled with mathematics throughout school and was diagnosed with the disorder as an adult in 1989 while undergoing unrelated psychological assessments. Cher, meanwhile, was diagnosed with both dyslexia and dyscalculia as an adult, having taken her son Chaz Bono in to be tested for the same conditions. In 2020, the English singer Robbie Williams described himself as "numerically dyslexic".

Dyscalculia has also been represented in popular media. In one episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation, the character of Liberty (portrayed by Sarah Barrable-Tishauer) states that she has dyscalculia. In 2018, the Netflix original film Amateur depicted Terron, a dyscalculic high school basketball player. Director Ryan Koo, who is not dyscalculic but underwent testing to see if he was, used various visual effects to simulate the effects of the disorder from Terron's point of view.