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Dyslexia Treatment Trend
Three trends in dyslexia treatment are the use of literacy apps, the use of music lessons to improve language skill and the use of visual treatments.
Literacy Apps
- Recently, many apps (over 500) have been released that claim to help with dyslexia, either by helping manage the symptoms or by helping improve literacy skills.
- Apps include things like Learn with Homer, which helps preschoolers learn reading skills, and Easy Spelling Aid + Translator and Dyslexia Support, which spells words out loud from text and includes multiple different fonts designed to help people with dyslexia.
- While the apps do seem to be utilized by many, a review of the apps found that most are using the word "dyslexia" to attract potential customers to their app without specifically designing it for dyslexics. However, some apps are being developed under the guidance of dyslexia experts, however, "the onus for determining the quality of most apps is left to users."
- Mobile apps have been called the one of the "dynamic and disruptive forces that are rapidly reshaping the intersection of dyslexia and technology," thus illustrating the momentous affect they are having on the treatment landscape for dyslexia.
Music Lessons
- Recent research shows that music can be beneficial as a therapy for dyslexic children.
- The research suggests that musical therapy should be used as part of a "systematic therapeutic and instructional practice for dyslexic children."
- While no specific branded program for this type of therapy was found, some examples of ways music is being used to help treat dyslexia include through rhythm development or piano lessons.
Visual Treatment
- Scientists recently discovered a key difference in light-receptor cell patterns in the eyes of those with dyslexia and those without.
- Specifically, the researchers found that in dyslexic patients, there was no "dominant eye" which caused images, specifically text, to be repeated as a mirror image, causing reading errors.
- First, this impacts the diagnostic market for dyslexia, which could now be simplified to a basic eye examination, instead of through a series of psychological tests.
- Additionally, it allowed the researchers to develop a low-cost treatment. The treatment uses an extremely fast blinking LED light which caused the mirror image to disappear for the dyslexic patient, causing them to only see one image and read more clearly.
- The treatment is not currently marketed, as it is still undergoing additional research and testing. However, experts say that it could drastically impact the treatment market for dyslexia.
Research Strategy
Trends were determined based on analysis from experts and/or the availability of hard data demonstrating the trend.