Definition of dyspraxia

Dyspraxia, not to be confused with dyslexia. However, the two syndromes both belong to the “dys” disorders, a term that encompasses cognitive system disorders and related learning disabilities.

Dyspraxia, also called developmental coordination disorder (developmental coordination disorder), corresponds to a difficulty in automating certain gestures, therefore certain sequences of movements. Praxis in fact corresponds to all coordinated, learned and automated movements, such as, for example, learning to write. This disorder is generally discovered at the time of the child’s first acquisitions. Dyspraxia is not related to a psychological or social problem, nor to mental retardation.

Concretely, a dyspraxic child has difficulty coordinating certain movements. His gestures are not automatic. For actions performed automatically by other children, the dyspraxic child will have to concentrate and make significant efforts. He is slow and clumsy. But also very tired because of the efforts made constantly to perform actions on which he must concentrate since there is no automatism. His gestures are not coordinated. He encounters difficulties in tying his laces, writing, dressing, etc. Dyspraxia, which concerns boys more than girls, is still largely unknown. It often results in some delays in learning and acquisition. Children who suffer from it often need individualized accommodation to be able to follow in class.

For example, a child with dyspraxia will have difficulty eating properly, filling a glass with water or dressing (the child must think about the meaning of each item of clothing but also the order in which he must put them; he has to think about it. need help dressing). With him, the gestures are neither fluid nor automated and the acquisition of certain gestures is very laborious, sometimes impossible. He does not like puzzles or construction games. He does not draw like other children his age. He struggles to learn to to write. He is often described as “very clumsy” by those around him. He has trouble concentrating at school, forgetting the instructions. He has difficulty catching a ball.

It exists several forms of dyspraxia. Its repercussions on the child’s life are more or less important. Dyspraxia is undoubtedly linked to abnormalities in the neurological circuits of the brain. This anomaly concerns, for example, many premature children.

Prevalence

Although little known, dyspraxia is said to be frequent since it affects nearly 3% of children. According to the Health Insurance, about one child per class would be suffering from dyspraxia. More broadly, and according to the French Federation of Dys (ffdys), dys disorders concern nearly 8% of the population.

Symptoms of dyspraxia

They can be quite variable from one child to another:

• Difficulties in performing automatic gestures
• Poor coordination of gestures, movements
• Clumsiness
• Difficulties in drawing, writing
• Difficulties in dressing
• Difficulty using a ruler, scissors or square
• Significant fatigue linked to a strong concentration required to perform certain simple and automatic daily actions
• There may be disorders that resemble attention disorders because the child is overwhelmed from the attentional point of view because of the phenomenon of double task to perform certain gestures (cognitive congestion)

The garçons are more affected than girls by dyspraxia.

Diagnostic

The diagnosis is carried out by a neurologist or a neuropsychologist, but it is often the school doctor who is at the origin of the detection, following academic difficulties. It is essential that this diagnosis be made quickly because, without a diagnosis, the child may end up in failure. The management of dyspraxia then concerns many health professionals such as pediatricians, psychomotor therapists, occupational therapists or even ophthalmologists, all of course depending on the difficulties encountered by the dyspraxic child.

Treatment of dyspraxia

The treatment of course involves taking charge of the symptoms which are, as we have said, very variable from one child to another. It is necessary to take charge of learning difficulties but also his anxiety or his lack of self-confidence, disorders which may have appeared following the difficulties encountered by the child, in particular at school.

It is ultimately a multidisciplinary team who best supports the dyspraxic child. After having carried out a complete assessment, the team will be able to offer adapted care and individualized treatment (with rehabilitation, psychological help and adaptation to compensate for the difficulties, for example). Speech therapy, orthoptics and psychomotor skills can thus be part of the overall treatment of dyspraxia. Psychological care can be added if necessary. At the same time, help at school, with a personalized plan, can be put in place to make life easier for children with dyspraxia in their class. A specialized teacher can also assess the child and offer specific support at school. Children with dyspraxia can therefore often easily learn to type on a typewriter, which is much easier for them than writing by hand.

The origins of dyspraxia

The causes are undoubtedly multiple and still poorly understood. In certain cases, it is cerebral lesions, due for example to prematurity, a stroke or a head trauma, which are at the origin of the dyspraxia, which is then called lesional dyspraxia. In other cases, that is to say when there is no visible problem in the brain and the child is in perfect health, we speak of developmental dyspraxia. And, in this case, the causes are more vague. We know that dyspraxia is not linked either to a mental deficit or to a psychological problem. Certain specific areas of the brain are said to be involved.