FamilyConnect®

For parents of children with visual impairments

Common Types of Disabilities

Many conditions tend to occur together with visual impairment, even though they may not have been the cause of the visual impairment itself. When this happens, the combination of disabilities involved can have a significant impact on your child's ability to learn about the world, communicate, and participate independently in daily life.

When your child has more than one disability, the various impairments he may experience result from the interacting effects of the individual conditions. For this reason, you may need to consult a number of medical professionals about your child's various conditions and the prognosis and treatment options that may be available.

Special educators and other service providers such as occupational and physical therapists and speech and language therapists can also be critical resources. They can work with your family to examine how the combination of your child's disabilities affects his development and what strategies can be used to support his learning.