Neurodevelopmental disorder

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Neurodevelopmental disorders are a group of mental conditions affecting the development of the nervous system, which includes the brain and spinal cord. According to the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, (DSM-5) published in 2013, these conditions generally appear in early childhood, usually before children start school, and can persist into adulthood.^[1] The key characteristic of all these disorders is that they negatively impact a person's functioning in one or more domains of life (personal, social, academic, occupational) depending on the disorder and deficits it has caused. All of these disorders and their levels of impairment exist on a spectrum, and affected individuals can experience varying degrees of symptoms and deficits, despite having the same diagnosis.^[1][2]

The DSM-5 classifies neurodevelopmental disorders into six overarching groups: intellectual, communication, autism, attention deficit hyperactivity, motor, and specific learning disorders.^[1] Often one disorder is accompanied by another.^[2]