Here, we provide an overview of the primary medical specialties that serve children with disabilities, with a description of the services they typically offer.
Primary care physicians or general pediatricians (GPs) provide routine medical care and yearly “well” check-ups. They also have the opportunity to be the first point of contact or referral when parents have concerns about their child’s development or behavior.
For children with developmental, learning, or behavioral issues, a developmental pediatrician has the training and experience necessary to provide a big-picture view of care. They work with families to coordinate and prioritize recommended services. They provide evaluations to help diagnose complex issues, as well as ongoing assessments and consultations with other professionals involved in your child’s care, and create and monitor an overall plan of care for your child. The developmental pediatrician can also function as an advocate in a school setting, with insurance companies, and in obtaining government-funded services.
Pediatric neurologists are medical doctors who work with children and specialize in treating conditions that affect the brain and nervous system. Specialty areas include autism, complex metabolic disorders, muscle and nerve disease, genetic conditions, multiple sclerosis, Tourette syndrome, and malformations. They also help treat those who struggle with headaches, epilepsy and seizures, sleep issues, or developmental conditions. Pediatric neurologists work with children who have genetic or congenital conditions. They are trained to evaluate and diagnose conditions and prescribe and monitor medication.
Epileptologists are neurologists who specialize in the research, diagnosis, treatment, and management of epilepsy. They are physicians who are trained in neurology and have also completed specialized training and study of epilepsy. Epileptologists will often provide comprehensive care for those suffering from epilepsy, which may begin with a series of tests to ensure the correct diagnosis. Following a diagnosis of epilepsy, they often attempt to determine the causes of the seizures and utilize other treatment techniques that may help manage the condition before prescribing medications. They typically work in hospitals, private practice, epilepsy clinics, or in academic settings.
Pediatric ophthalmologists are medical doctors who have extensive specialized training in examining, diagnosing, and treating eye conditions in infants, children, and adolescents. Because pediatric ophthalmologists perform eye operations, they are both surgical and medical specialists. Areas of speciality may include craniofacial abnormalities, neurological eye disorders, retinopathy of prematurity, strabismus (eye misalignment in children and adults), and tear duct obstructions (blocked tear duct).
Neuro-ophthalmology is a subspecialty of both neurology and ophthalmology. Neuro-ophthalmologists specialize in vision problems that relate to the nervous system. This includes vision problems due to brain injuries or diseases from trauma, stroke, or infection.
A neuro-ophthalmologist can diagnose and treat neurological and systemic diseases that affect your sight and the movement of your eyes. They test patients using electroretinography, optical coherence tomography, and multifocal electroretinography (EGR).
Optometrists are primary health care practitioners trained in primary eye care and disease treatment. They are not trained medical professionals so they do not perform eye surgery. Care includes routine vision tests, complete eye examinations, diagnosis of some eye conditions, prescriptions for eyeglasses and contact lenses, and minor surgical procedures.
A vision therapist specializes in a sequence of eye exercises that are used to improve the quality and efficiency of vision. It is also called vision training. Vision therapy helps patients’ eyes work more efficiently so they can perform daily tasks like reading and writing with more ease.
A pediatric audiologist’s primary role is the early detection and treatment of hearing loss in children. They will often provide newborn hearing screening, comprehensive audiologic evaluations, auditory brainstem response (ABR) evaluation, auditory steady state response (ASSR) evaluation, hearing aid services, and cochlear implant evaluation and mapping. Areas of specialization include chronic ear disease, congenital ear malformations, speech and language delays, and children who have a history of hospitalization in neonatal care units or meningitis. Audiologists may also collaborate with other specialists in diagnosing a child with certain conditions. For example, they may work with speech and language pathologists (SLPs) in evaluating and treating a child with Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) and the identification of language disorders that occur in association with CAPD.
Pediatric otolaryngologists, often referred to as a pediatric ENT (ear, nose, and throat doctor), is a doctor who specializes in the diseases and disorders of the ears, nose, throat, head, and neck. ENTs provide diagnoses and treatments for the full array of conditions affecting infants and children, such as hearing loss and ear diseases, allergy and sinus disease, voice and swallowing abnormalities, airway problems, cleft lip and palate, and acquired and congenital head and neck masses. Pediatric ENTs also manage and treat disorders of the head and neck.
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