Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)

Audiologist with child and parent

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) is a disorder of the auditory system that causes a disruption in the way that an individual's brain understands what they are hearing. It is not a form of hearing loss, despite showing difficulty with hearing-related tasks.

What are the symptoms?

APD can occur in both children and adults, tested and diagnosed by an audiologist. Signs and symptoms of APD vary from person to person. Many of these symptoms can often be associated with other commonly known disorders, such as ADD/ADHD, autism spectrum disorder and speech and/or language disorders. Many times a child with APD will have a combination of multiple symptoms. These can include:

Significant difficulty understanding speech, especially in the presence of background noise;
Difficulty following multi-step directions that are presented verbally, without visual cues;
Easily distracted by loud or spontaneous sounds;
Difficulty attending to long lectures or other long periods of listening;
Difficulty remembering and/or effectively summarizing information presented verbally;
Difficulty reading, spelling, and/or writing when compared to their peers

How do we test for APD?

Testing is completed in a sound booth in the audiology clinic. The child listens to a variety of difficult or challenging situations through headphones. Some examples of these can include listening to words or sentences in the presence of background noise or listening to a group of words that have been put through an acoustic filter. Breaks can be given during testing as sometimes testing can take up to 2 hours.

How do we treat APD?

The audiologist will make recommendations for school to enhance learning. Many times the Cook Children's audiologist can work directly with your child's school based audiologist. The audiologist can also make recommendations for speech and language testing. Speech and/or language therapy can also be beneficial to children with APD.

Why choose Cook Children's Audiology

Our audiologists are uniquely qualified to provide a comprehensive array of professional services related to the audiologic identification, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of vestibular disorders. Our team has the training and experience necessary to provide children and teens with the services they need to reach their full potential.

We're here to help.

If your child has been recommended to us, you probably have questions. We can help. If you would like to schedule an appointment, refer a patient or speak to our staff, please call our offices at 682-885-4063.