| Borderline intellectual functioning | |
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| Other names | Borderline mental retardation, borderline mental subnormality, borderline mental deficiency, borderline mental disability, borderline intelligence, deficientia intelligentiæ, backwardness |
| Specialty | Psychiatry |
| Part of a series on |
| Psychology |
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Borderline intellectual functioning, previously called borderline mental retardation (in the ICD-8), is a categorization of intelligence wherein a person has below average cognitive ability (generally an IQ of 70–85), but the deficit is not as severe as intellectual disability (below 70). It is sometimes called below average IQ (BAIQ). This is technically a cognitive impairment; however, this group may not be sufficiently mentally disabled to be eligible for specialized services.
Codes
The DSM-IV-TR code of borderline intellectual functioning is V62.89.DSM-5 diagnosis codes are V62.89 and R41.83.
Learning skills
During school years, individuals with borderline intellectual functioning are often "slow learners". Although a large percentage of this group fails to complete high school and can often achieve only a low socioeconomic status, most adults in this group blend in with the rest of the population.
Differential diagnosis
According to the DSM-5, differentiating borderline intellectual functioning and mild intellectual disability requires careful assessment of adaptive and intellectual functions and their variations, especially in the presence of co-morbid psychiatric disorders that may affect patient compliance with standardized test (for example, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with severe impulsivity or schizophrenia).
See also
Further reading
- Gillberg, Christopher (1995). Clinical child neuropsychiatry. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 47–48. ISBN 0-521-54335-5.
- Harris, James C. (2006). Intellectual disability : understanding its development, causes, classification, evaluation, and treatment. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-517885-8.