TYPES OF DISABILITY, ITS CAUSES AND NATURE Person with Disability 1. Physical disability Physical disability affects a person's abilit...
TYPES OF DISABILITY, ITS CAUSES AND NATURE
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| Person with Disability |
1. Physical disability
Physical disability affects a person's ability to walk, run or perform his/her daily chores independently. In other words, it affects a person's mobility and manual skills. He/she often requires the help of some other person or equipment (like wheelchair, crutches, etc.) to assist him/her with mobility. Physical disability may be caused due to the following two factors, namely,
(a) Genetic factors
(b) Accrued factors
Injuries incurred during pregnancy or at the time of birth may lead to physical impairment Further accrued factor like sudden accidents, any disease, dead infections Of any responsible for such disability.
Physical disability can be further categorised as:-
Musculoskeletal disability.
Neuromuscular disability.
(1) Musculoskeletal disability:- This may be defined as the inability of the bones to perform the required moments. Such disability may be characterised as:
- Deformity in any body part
- Ostengeneas distrophy - Improper development of the connective tissues during the growth years makes the bones soft. As a result individual develop postural deformity
- Muscular dystrophy - Due to genetic factors the muscles gradually become weak.
(2) Neuromuscular disability:- It may be defined as the inability of a person to perform his/her routine activities because of an illness or disorder of the nervous system.
Examples of this neuromuscular disability include:
Cerebral palsy: It is a neurological condition which affects the movements of body parts. It may be caused either at the time of birth or due to some illness like polio. People with such disability experience difficulty in body movement and muscle coordination. They may also have behaviour related problems or Fate difficulty m speaking, seeing etc.
Spina bifida: A defect in the spinal cord by birth lead to this disability. The lower limbs of the affected person may be paralyzed. They loose control over their intestinal and urinary activities.
Poliomyelitis: It is an infectious disease caused by the polio Virus. It affects the nervous system and often leads to paralyses of Lower limbs. The legs and the body of the affected person become very weak.The person is unable to walk or limb.
Stroke: This is caused when there is a blockage in blood circulation to the central nervous system. Due to this, an individual may develop sensory disability.
Head injuries: An individual may phase difficulty in his/her sensory or motor functions in case of severe head injury.
Spinal cord injury: People with that injury may face temporary or permanent inability to perform an activity. Such persons usually don't have any control on their intestinal or urinary activities. Their posture also become unstable.
2. Intellectual disability
According to American Heritage Dictionary, “Intellectual disability is a disorder which occurs with the onset of childhood and is characterized py limitations in intellectual functions such as reasoning and learning and carrying out the functions of daily life.” intellectual disability causes difficulty in how a person plans, comprehends and reasons. Such people generally have low learning ability. As a result, they face difficulty in communicating with others. They can neither understand what other people say nor can they explain their own thoughts to other people.
IQ (intelligence quotient) is measured by an IQ test. The average IQ of people is between 90 and 110. The average IQ of people with intellectual disability is between 70-75 percent or below. They face difficulties in reading, and solving mathematical problems. They also face difficulties while communicating or socialising. This type of disability is generally occurs before the age of 18 years.
3. cognitive disability
Cognitive disability also known as general learning disability cal due to brain injury, improper development or genetic factors. Brain injury can be internal or external. External injury may be caused by a direct hit or accident while, internal injury may be caused by a stroke. Cognitive disability is a broad term and also includes intellectual disability. Person with cognitive disability may face problems in reading text, memorising, problem solving, performing calculations, concentrating and abstract thinking. This disability is often found in people suffering from dyslexia (a disorder in which person has difficulty in learning or understanding the letters, words or signs but it does not affect one’s intellectual abilities) or speech disorder.
4. Sensory disability
Sensory disability is the impairment of one or multiple senses of an individual. This impacts their ability to see, hear, smell, taste or touch. It may be caused by birth or due to any accident.
Causes and Nature of Disability .
We know that disability may be by birth or occur at a later stage. Some of the possible causes of disability are as follows:
1. Genetics: Genetics play a major role in causing disability. Genetic conditions such as Down Syndrome, a Pragile X syndrome Phenylketonusea (PKU) occur due to abnormality in genes inherited from parents errors during gene combination, overexposure to x-rays or other reasons. They can cause disability, especially physical or intellectual disability.
3. Malnutrition: Improper diet during pregnancy or during childhood may lead to disability. Lack of essential vitamins and mineral salt in diet leads to improper functioning of the endocrine gland This may result in physical or intellectual disability For example, deficiency of vitamin A causes visual disability. Similarly iodine deficiency is the primary cause of intellectual important that a pregnant woman receives Proper healthcare for healthy birth. It is also advisable fur a pregnant woman to take proper medication and get the right vaccinations as recommended by the doctor.
Malnutntion in children during their growth years might lead to intellectual, physical or cognitive disability at a later stage.
4. Diseases: Diseases such as cancer, stroke, diabetes, etc. also contribute majorly to long-term disability. These diseases limit the ability to function properly and carry out day -to-day activities. Similarly diseases like arthritis, mental illnesses such as depression, bipolar disorder, etc. are also responsible for causing physical disability.
5. Infections: Infections caused by virus, bacteria, etc. may also lead to physical disability. For example, polio is a physical disability which is caused by polio virus.
6. Other factors: Other factors that may lead to a disability include poverty, lack of education, consumption of intoxicating drinks, increased use of chemical substances, pesticides, etc.
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