Learning Disabilities

Our plain-English summary of Learning Disabilities, by M.C. Meehan (1969).

The study

• Author: M.C. Meehan
• Published: JAMA - Journal of American Medical Association, Volume 209 No8. August 25th 1969
• Type of article: Editorial
• Our copy: from Johns-Manville's own medical library.

In plain English

This item was not a research study and did not concern asbestos. It was a short 1969 JAMA editorial about children with learning difficulties, and it reviewed a book titled Learning Disabilities. The author wrote that some physicians and pediatricians were recognizing that many children have specific learning difficulties, probably related to inconspicuous neurological defects. According to the author, if such a child's problems are identified early through a history, examination and special tests, the child can be greatly helped, and medication and appropriate educational methods are usually advantageous. The book gathered papers from two symposia held in 1966 and 1968 by the San Francisco chapter of the California Association for Neurologically Handicapped Children, along with a few additional essays. The author called it one of the best recent books on the subject and recommended to medical readers its first three chapters on background and four papers on the physician's role. The editorial reported no data, fiber types, workplace exposures or disease findings. The scanned page also held parts of other, unrelated editorials.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: editorial and book review (not a research study)
• Who was studied: No study population. The editorial discusses, in general terms, school children with learning difficulties.
• Main results:
  • The author stated that children's specific learning difficulties are probably related to inconspicuous neurological defects. This is the author's view, not a study finding.
  • The author stated that a child whose problems are identified early can be greatly helped, and that appropriate educational methods (and medication) are usually advantageous.
  • The reviewed book collected papers from two symposia, held in 1966 and 1968, together with a few additional essays.
• The authors' conclusion: The author recommended the book to medical readers, especially its first three chapters on background and four papers on the physician's role.

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