Neurodevelopmental Disabilities

A unique pediatric subspecialty focused on diagnosing, treating, and managing complex neurological conditions that affect a child’s development. Our field is deeply rooted in neurology but integrates critical elements from developmental-behavioral pediatrics and behavioral science to offer comprehensive care for children and young adults, extending from infancy through adolescence and into adulthood.


Our unique training and perspective shape the diagnosis and management of neurological conditions in several key ways:

Developmental Context

NDD clinicians consider how neurological conditions manifest differently across the lifespan. They assess how a child's developmental stage interacts with their neurological symptoms, and tailor interventions to promote optimal development.

Behavioral Comorbidities

Many neurological conditions are associated with behavioral and psychiatric comorbidities. NDD training equips clinicians to identify and manage these behavioral aspects as an integral part of the neurological condition.

Functional Impact

NDD clinicians focus not just on treating neurological symptoms but on optimizing function and quality of life. They consider how a neurological condition impacts an individual's ability to learn, communicate, form relationships, and participate in daily activities.

Educational Support

NDD specialists bridge the gap between medical understanding and educational needs. They conduct school evaluations to identify learning challenges, assist families in securing educational services like IEPs and 504 Plans, and support transition planning from school to adulthood. This integrated approach ensures that neurological insights inform educational strategies, optimizing learning outcomes for individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders.

Multidisciplinary Care

The developmental and behavioral aspects of neurological conditions often require a multidisciplinary approach. NDD clinicians are skilled at coordinating care across medical, educational, and community settings to address the complex needs of their patients.

Lifespan Perspective

NDD training emphasizes the importance of transition planning and continuity of care as patients move from childhood to adulthood. NDD clinicians help patients and families navigate the challenges of living with a neurodevelopmental disorder across the lifespan.

 Comprehensive Care Across Neurodevelopmental Conditions

NDD clinicians specialize in diagnosing and managing a wide range of conditions, including:

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), intellectual disabilities, and various learning disabilities, including dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia. Also includes speech and language disorders, anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and complex behavioral conditions like Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Conduct Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), attachment disorders, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Includes but not limited to Down syndrome (Trisomy 21), Fragile X syndrome, Rett syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, Angelman syndrome, Williams syndrome, Tay-Sachs disease, phenylketonuria (PKU), mitochondrial disorders such as MELAS and Leigh syndrome, lysosomal storage diseases like Gaucher disease and Niemann-Pick disease, galactosemia, urea cycle disorders, maple syrup urine disease, Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome, neurofibromatosis, tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), and adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD).

Includes a wide range of conditions, including generalized epilepsies such as absence seizures, myoclonic epilepsy, and tonic-clonic seizures, as well as focal (partial) epilepsies. It also includes specific syndromes like juvenile myoclonic epilepsy, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, Dravet syndrome, benign Rolandic epilepsy, and infantile spasms (West syndrome). Additionally, manage febrile seizures, status epilepticus, reflex epilepsies such as photosensitive epilepsy, and epileptic encephalopathies, including Landau-Kleffner syndrome and epilepsy with continuous spike-and-wave during sleep (CSWS). Chronic epilepsy is associated with a broad spectrum of developmental consequences and patients need assessment and support to address educational and behavioral needs.

Treat cerebral palsy, a range of muscular dystrophies including Duchenne and Becker, spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), peripheral neuropathies, myasthenia gravis, Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, hypotonia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Friedreich's ataxia, Guillain-Barré syndrome, and various myopathies such as congenital, metabolic, and inflammatory myopathies. These disorders are increasingly known to have associated developmental conditions that have not previously been studied.

Autoimmune and inflammatory conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS), acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), Rasmussen’s encephalitis, autoimmune encephalitis including anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP).

Conditions such as Tourette syndrome, chronic motor or vocal tic disorder, and various forms of dystonia (including generalized, focal, and cervical dystonia) are treated by NDD clinicians. They also provide treatment for chorea, including Sydenham’s chorea and Huntington’s disease, as well as ataxias like spinocerebellar ataxia and episodic ataxia, myoclonus, parkinsonism, ballismus, tardive dyskinesia, restless legs syndrome (RLS), and essential tremor. It's common for these conditions to coexist with psychiatric disorders.

NDD specialists provide care for individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI), concussion, and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). They also manage various brain tumors, including both primary and metastatic types, as well as neurological complications arising from cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy-induced neurotoxicity and radiation-induced brain injury. Additionally, they treat cerebrovascular injuries, including hemorrhagic and ischemic strokes, as well as arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).

Includes narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea, central sleep apnea, insomnia, restless legs syndrome (RLS), periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD), parasomnias such as night terrors and sleepwalking (somnambulism), REM sleep behavior disorder, circadian rhythm sleep-wake disorders like delayed sleep phase disorder (DSPD) and non-24-hour sleep-wake disorder, hypersomnia, sleep-related breathing disorders, and sleep-related movement disorders.