Health Library

Mathematics disorder

Developmental dyscalculia

Mathematics disorder is a condition in which a child's math ability is far below normal for their age, intelligence, and education.

I Would Like to Learn About:

Causes

Children who have mathematics disorder have trouble with simple mathematical activities, such as counting and adding.

Mathematical disorder may appear with:

• Developmental coordination disorder
• Developmental reading disorder
• Mixed receptive-expressive language disorder

Symptoms

The child may have trouble with math, as well as low scores in math classes and on tests.

Problems the child may have are:

• Trouble with reading, writing, and copying numbers
• Problems counting and adding numbers, often making simple mistakes
• Telling the difference between adding and subtracting
• Problems understanding math symbols and word problems
• Lining up numbers properly to add, subtract, or multiply
• Arranging numbers from smallest to largest, or the opposite
• Understanding graphs

Exams and Tests

Standardized tests can assess the child's math ability. Grades and class performance can also help.

Treatment

The best treatment is special (remedial) education. Computer-based programs may also help.

Outlook (Prognosis)

Early intervention improves the chances of a better outcome.

Possible Complications

The child may have problems in school, including behavior problems and loss of self-esteem. Some children with mathematics disorder become anxious or afraid when given math problems, making the problem even worse.

When to Contact a Medical Professional

Contact your child's health care provider if you have any concerns about your child's development.

Prevention

Recognizing the problem early is important. Treatment may begin as early as kindergarten or elementary school.

Related Information

References

Guzman JM, Grajo LC. Learning disabilities and developmental coordination disorder. In: Lazaro RT, ed. Umphred's Neurological Rehabilitation. 8th ed. St. Louis, MO: Elsevier; 2026:chap 12.

Kelly DP, McCain DH. Neurodevelopmental and executive function and dysfunction. In: Kliegman RM, St. Geme JW, Blum NJ, et al, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 22nd ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2025:chap 49.

Rapin I. Dyscalculia and the calculating brain. Pediatr Neurol. 2016;61:11-20. PMID: 27515455 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27515455/.

Sidhu R, O' Banion DD, Hall C. Autism and other neurodevelopmental disabilities. In: Jankovic J, Mazziotta JC, Pomeroy SL, Newman NJ, eds. Bradley and Daroff's Neurology in Clinical Practice. 8th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 90.

Review Date: 4/18/2026  

Reviewed By: Charles I. Schwartz, MD, FAAP, Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Regional Medical Director of Penn Medicine Primary and Specialty Care, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, General Pediatrician at PennCare for Kids, Phoenixville, PA. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, MD, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, for Health Content Provider (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is an independent audit to verify that A.D.A.M. follows rigorous standards of quality and accountability. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial policy, editorial process and privacy policy. A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics. This site complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information: verify here.

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. No warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, is made as to the accuracy, reliability, timeliness, or correctness of any translations made by a third-party service of the information provided herein into any other language.

© 1997- 2026 A.D.A.M., a business unit of Ebix, Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.

All content on this site including text, images, graphics, audio, video, data, metadata, and compilations is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. You may view the content for personal, noncommercial use. Any other use requires prior written consent from Ebix. You may not copy, reproduce, distribute, transmit, display, publish, reverse-engineer, adapt, modify, store beyond ordinary browser caching, index, mine, scrape, or create derivative works from this content. You may not use automated tools to access or extract content, including to create embeddings, vectors, datasets, or indexes for retrieval systems. Use of any content for training, fine-tuning, calibrating, testing, evaluating, or improving AI systems of any kind is prohibited without express written consent. This includes large language models, machine learning models, neural networks, generative systems, retrieval-augmented systems, and any software that ingests content to produce outputs. Any unauthorized use of the content including AI-related use is a violation of our rights and may result in legal action, damages, and statutory penalties to the fullest extent permitted by law. Ebix reserves the right to enforce its rights through legal, technological, and contractual measures.