Speech and language disability and specific learning disability have been added for the first time.
For the first time since 1980 (i.e., DSM-3), the DSM-5 integrated Specific Learning Disorders under one label instead of retaining the separate disorders: reading disorder, writing disorder, and mathematics disorder. There is considerable variability both within and between these classifications, a lack of isolated neural deficits [49], high rates of comorbidity [26]. Given these and the dimensional framework of the DSM-5, the decision was to have one single category for Specific Learning Disorder, but to use specifiers to capture the developmental course and severity of various manifestations at the time of assessment [56]. Specifiers are not mutually exclusive, which means manifestations across academic domains can be captured within a single diagnosis. One of the most common manifestations of Specific Learning Disorder is dyslexia, a difficulty mapping letters with the sounds of one’s language in order to read printed words typically resulting from a deficit in the phonological component of language [20]. In the DSM-5, dyslexia is suggested as an alternative term for problems with accurate or fluent word recognition, poor decoding, and poor spelling abilities.