READING RECOVERY FOLLOWING HERPES-ENCEPHALITIS

Herpes encephalitis, a viral attack on the brain, contracted in Vietnam through the veteran's sexual activities, is certainly not the familiar learning disability. Yet the documented, neurologically induced reading dysfunction offered implications that the clinician could not avoid. First, similarities between the symptoms existed. Visual-perceptual inaccuracies persisted. Furthermore, their severity varied with his frustrations and mental states on different days. He was frustrated with his difficulty in evoking the oral equivalents of objects or concepts he knew. Wide discrepancies existed between encoding and deconding skills. He was inconsistent with skills. Perseverations persisted. Blending was difficult. Sound-symbol concepts could be verbalized but not applied. Second, although recovery from encephalitis varies, this reported case responded to remedial principles that are recognized in the field of learning disabilities. These included the cooperation of cross disciplines, ongoing diagnostic teaching, multisensory reinforcements, individualized instruction, and sequential skills development.