Reading disorder

Persistent difficulty in an aspect of reading with functional consequences, assessed in context. Word-level difficulty and poor comprehension despite adequate decoding are distinct possible profiles.

An account in which several probabilistic risks and protective influences combine rather than one deficit being necessary and sufficient for every case. Shared risks can produce overlap while differing profiles retain practical meaning.^[ref]

Co-occurring word-reading and broader oral language difficulties. Studies selecting nonoverlapping groups are useful contrasts but do not describe the full distribution of mixed profiles.^[ref]

Poor understanding of text despite relatively adequate word-reading accuracy. Assessment should examine oral language, fluency and higher-level processes rather than infer a single cause from the profile.^[ref]

A developmental pattern centred on difficulties in accurate or fluent word reading and spelling. It is not synonymous with every comprehension problem, nor necessarily an isolated phonological deficit.