By most definitions, intellectual disability is more accurately considered a "disability" rather than a "disease". Intellectual disability can be distinguished in many ways from mental illness, such as schizophrenia or depression. Currently, there is no "cure" for an established disability, though with appropriate support and teaching, most individuals can learn to do many things.

There are thousands of agencies around the world that provide assistance for people with developmental disabilities. They include state-run, for-profit, and non-profit, privately run agencies. Within one agency there could be departments that include fully staffed residential homes, day rehabilitation programs that approximate schools, workshops wherein people with disabilities can obtain jobs, programs that assist people with developmental disabilities in obtaining jobs in the community, programs that provide support for people with developmental disabilities who have their own apartments, programs that assist them with raising their children, and many more. There are also many agencies and programs for parents of children with developmental disabilities.

Beyond that, there are specific programs that people with developmental disabilities can take part in wherein they learn basic life skills. These "goals" may take a much longer amount of time for them to accomplish, but the ultimate goal is independence. This may be anything from independence in tooth brushing to an independent residence. People with developmental disabilities learn throughout their lives and can obtain many new skills even late in life with the help of their families, caregivers, clinicians and the people who coordinate the efforts of all of these people.

There are four broad areas of intervention that allow for active participation from caregivers, community members, clinicians, and of course, the individual(s) with an intellectual disability. These include psychosocial treatments, behavioral treatments, cognitive-behavioral treatments, and family-oriented strategies. Psychosocial treatments are intended primarily for children before and during the preschool years as this is the optimum time for intervention. This early intervention should include encouragement of exploration, mentoring in basic skills, celebration of developmental advances, guided rehearsal and extension of newly acquired skills, protection from harmful displays of disapproval, teasing, or punishment, and exposure to a rich and responsive language environment. A great example of a successful intervention is the Carolina Abecedarian Project that was conducted with over 100 children from low SES families beginning in infancy through pre-school years. Results indicated that by age 2, the children provided the intervention had higher test scores than control group children, and they remained approximately 5 points higher 10 years after the end of the program. By young adulthood, children from the intervention group had better educational attainment, employment opportunities, and fewer behavioral problems than their control-group counterparts.

Core components of behavioral treatments include language and social skills acquisition. Typically, one-to-one training is offered in which a therapist uses a shaping procedure in combination with positive reinforcements to help the child pronounce syllables until words are completed. Sometimes involving pictures and visual aids, therapists aim at improving speech capacity so that short sentences about important daily tasks (e.g. bathroom use, eating, etc.) can be effectively communicated by the child. In a similar fashion, older children benefit from this type of training as they learn to sharpen their social skills such as sharing, taking turns, following instruction, and smiling. At the same time, a movement known as social inclusion attempts to increase valuable interactions between children with an intellectual disability and their non-disabled peers. Cognitive-behavioral treatments, a combination of the previous two treatment types, involves a strategical-metastrategical learning technique that teaches children math, language, and other basic skills pertaining to memory and learning. The first goal of the training is to teach the child to be a strategical thinker through making cognitive connections and plans. Then, the therapist teaches the child to be metastrategical by teaching them to discriminate among different tasks and determine which plan or strategy suits each task. Finally, family-oriented strategies delve into empowering the family with the skill set they need to support and encourage their child or children with an intellectual disability. In general, this includes teaching assertiveness skills or behavior management techniques as well as how to ask for help from neighbors, extended family, or day-care staff. As the child ages, parents are then taught how to approach topics such as housing/residential care, employment, and relationships. The ultimate goal for every intervention or technique is to give the child autonomy and a sense of independence using the acquired skills he/she has.

Although there is no specific medication for intellectual disability, many people with developmental disabilities have further medical complications and may be prescribed several medications. For example, autistic children with developmental delay may be prescribed antipsychotics or mood stabilizers to help with their behavior. Use of psychotropic medications such as benzodiazepines in people with intellectual disability requires monitoring and vigilance as side effects occur commonly and are often misdiagnosed as behavioral and psychiatric problems.

Current trends in treating the disorder include medications for symptom-based treatments that aim to minimize the secondary characteristics associated with the disorder. If an individual is diagnosed with FXS, genetic counseling for testing family members at risk for carrying the full mutation or premutation is a critical first-step. Due to a higher prevalence of FXS in boys, the most commonly used medications are stimulants that target hyperactivity, impulsivity, and attentional problems. For co-morbid disorders with FXS, antidepressants such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are utilized to treat the underlying anxiety, obsessive-compulsive behaviors, and mood disorders. Following antidepressants, antipsychotics such as Risperdal and Seroquel are used to treat high rates of self-injurious, aggressive and aberrant behaviors in this population (Bailey Jr et al., 2012). Anticonvulsants are another set of pharmacological treatments used to control seizures as well as mood swings in 13%–18% of individuals suffering from FXS. Drugs targeting the mGluR5 (metabotropic glutamate receptors) that are linked with synaptic plasticity are especially beneficial for targeted symptoms of FXS. Lithium is also currently being used in clinical trials with humans, showing significant improvements in behavioral functioning, adaptive behavior, and verbal memory. Alongside pharmacological treatments, environmental influences such as home environment and parental abilities as well as behavioral interventions such as speech therapy, sensory integration, etc. all factor in together to promote adaptive functioning for individuals with FXS.

Current pharmacological treatment centers on managing problem behaviors and psychiatric symptoms associated with FXS. However, as there has been very little research done in this specific population, the evidence to support the use of these medications in individuals with FXS is poor.

ADHD, which affects the majority of boys and 30% of girls with FXS, is frequently treated using stimulants. However, the use of stimulants in the fragile X population is associated with a greater frequency of adverse events including increased anxiety, irritability and mood lability. Anxiety, as well as mood and obsessive-compulsive symptoms, may be treated using SSRIs, although these can also aggravate hyperactivity and cause disinhibited behavior. Atypical antipsychotics can be used to stabilise mood and control aggression, especially in those with comorbid ASD. However, monitoring is required for metabolic side effects including weight gain and diabetes, as well as movement disorders related to extrapyramidal side effects such as tardive dyskinesia. Individuals with coexisting seizure disorder may require treatment with anticonvulsants.

There has been no treatment discovered for Jacobsen Syndrome until now but the Symptoms can be treated. 56% of children with Jacobsen Syndrome have congenital heart problems to keep them in check a baseline evaluation can be made by a paediatric cardiologist by carrying out an electrocardiogram or echocardiogram. Any problems that are found can be treated then.

Almost all affected children are born with a bleeding disorder, monthly CBT may help ease the problem. Consecutively Platelet transfusion and ddAVP can be carried out. Medication that interferes with platelet count should be avoided and oral contraceptive therapy may be considered for women with heavy bleeding during menses.

Children affected with Jacobsen Syndrome have severe to Moderate intellectual disabilities and cognitive impairment. An evaluation by a neuropsychologist or a behaviour specialist like a Psychiatrist or Psychologist can be performed, including brain imaging like MRI or ERP. Then as deemed appropriate intervention programs can be carried through. Music therapy is very beneficial for language development. According to the age, befitting vision and hearing test can aid in fixing problems related cognition. For problems related to behaviour like ADHD, medication or therapy would be required but a combination of both is more effective. An ophthalmologist should be consulted to treat the eye defects. Play and interactive games encourage the child to speak. Habilitiation in children should begin at an early age. A habilitation team includes professionals with special expertise in how disability affects everyday life, health and development. The entire family is supported to help the affected children and their families adjust better.

There are no current treatments or cures for the underlying defects of FXS. Management of FXS may include speech therapy, behavioral therapy, sensory integration occupational therapy, special education, or individualised educational plans, and, when necessary, treatment of physical abnormalities. Persons with fragile X syndrome in their family histories are advised to seek genetic counseling to assess the likelihood of having children who are affected, and how severe any impairments may be in affected descendants.

Although 1p36 Deletion Syndrome can be debilitating in many ways, patients do respond to various treatments and therapies. These include the following:

American Sign Language: Because few individuals with Monosomy 1p36 develop complex speech, an alternate form of communication is critical to development. Most patients can learn basic signs to communicate their needs and wants. This also appears to reduce frustration and may reduce self-injurious tendencies. Children with hearing loss will often qualify for locally sponsored sign language classes.

Music Therapy: Music has been shown to aid children with 1p36 deletion in various developmental areas. It serves as an excellent auditory stimulus and can teach listening skills. Songs with actions help the child to develop coordination and motor skills.

Physical Therapy: Due to low muscle tone, patients with 1p36 Deletions take a great deal of time to learn to roll over, sit up, crawl and walk. However, regular physical therapy has shown to shorten the length of time needed to achieve each of those developmental milestones.

Occupational Therapy can be helpful to help children with oral motor and feeding difficulties (including dysphagia and transitioning to solid foods) as well as developmental delays in motor, social and sensory domains.

There is no cure available for Weaver syndrome. However, with multidisciplinary management such as neurological, pediatric, orthopedic, and psychomotor care and genetic counseling, symptoms can be managed. Surgery may be used to correct any skeletal issues. Physical and occupational therapy are considered an option to help with muscle tone. Also, speech therapy is often recommended for speech related problems.

Adaptive behavior, or adaptive functioning, refers to the skills needed to live independently (or at the minimally acceptable level for age). To assess adaptive behavior, professionals compare the functional abilities of a child to those of other children of similar age. To measure adaptive behavior, professionals use structured interviews, with which they systematically elicit information about persons' functioning in the community from people who know them well. There are many adaptive behavior scales, and accurate assessment of the quality of someone's adaptive behavior requires clinical judgment as well. Certain skills are important to adaptive behavior, such as:

- Daily living skills, such as getting dressed, using the bathroom, and feeding oneself

- Communication skills, such as understanding what is said and being able to answer

- Social skills with peers, family members, spouses, adults, and others

Remediation includes both appropriate remedial instruction and classroom accommodations.

Treatment is symptomatic. There is no standard course of treatment for Sotos syndrome.

While there is no specific treatment for the underlying genetic cause of LFS; corrective procedures, preventive intervention measures and therapies may be considered in the treatment and management of the many craniofacial, orthopedic and psychiatric problems associated with the disorder. More pressing issues such as cardiac involvement or epileptic seizures should be routinely examined and monitored. Close attention and specialized follow-up care, including neuropshycological evaluation methods and therapies, and special education, should be given to diagnose and prevent psychiatric disorders and related behavioral problems such as psychosis and outbursts of aggression.

Different therapies are offered to children with motor skills disorders to help them improve their motor effectiveness. Many children work with an occupational and physical therapist, as well as educational professionals. This helpful combination is beneficial to the child. Cognitive therapy, sensory integration therapy, and kinesthetic training are often favorable treatment for the child.

Sotos syndrome is not a life-threatening disorder and patients may have a normal life expectancy. Developmental delays may improve in the school-age years; however, coordination problems may persist into adulthood, along with any learning disabilities and/or other physical or mental issues.

There is no known cure available for the Wilson-Turner Syndrome. Instead, treatment options are available to fight individual symptoms. For obesity, a nutritional diet manipulation is combined with an exercise regimen that has a greater energy expenditure than intake. For hypogonadism, testosterone replacement is done. Finally, for gynecomastia, weight loss using similar methods for obesity is prescribed. However, if the individual finds his increased breast tissue psychologically distressing and/or is too severe, reduction mammaplasty is done. Currently, researchers are investigating therapy using antiestrogens and aromatase inhibitors to treat persistent pubertal gynecomastia.

Although there is no cure for 13q deletion syndrome, symptoms can be managed, usually with the involvement of a neurologist, rehabilitation physician, occupational therapist, physiotherapist, psychotherapist, nutritionist, special education professional, and/or speech therapist. If the affected child's growth is particularly slow, growth hormone treatment can be used to augment growth. Plastic surgeries can repair cleft palates, and surgical repair or monitoring by a pediatric cardiologist can manage cardiac defects. Some skeletal, neurological, genitourinary, gastrointestinal, and ophthalmic abnormalities can be definitively treated with surgery. Endocrine abnormalities can often be managed medically. Special educators, speech and occupational therapists, and physiotherapists can help a child develop skills in and out of school.

With appropriate treatment and management, patients with Weaver syndrome appear to do well, both physically and intellectually, throughout their life and have a normal lifespan. Their adult height is normal as well.

The treatments of kabuki syndrome are still being developed due to its genetic nature. The first step to treatment is diagnosis. After diagnosis, the treatment of medical conditions can often be treated by medical intervention. There are also options in psychotherapy for young children with this disorder, as well as the family of the child. Genetic counseling is available as a preventative treatment for kabuki syndrome because it can be inherited and expressed by only having one copy of the mutated gene.

Nutrition disorders and nutritional deficits may cause neurodevelopmental disorders, such as spina bifida, and the rarely occurring anencephaly, both of which are neural tube defects with malformation and dysfunction of the nervous system and its supporting structures, leading to serious physical disability and emotional sequelae. The most common nutritional cause of neural tube defects is folic acid deficiency in the mother, a B vitamin usually found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and milk products. (Neural tube defects are also caused by medications and other environmental causes, many of which interfere with folate metabolism, thus they are considered to have multifactorial causes.) Another deficiency, iodine deficiency, produces a spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders ranging from mild emotional disturbance to severe mental retardation. (see also cretinism)

Excesses in both maternal and infant diets may cause disorders as well, with foods or food supplements proving toxic in large amounts. For instance in 1973 K.L. Jones and D.W. Smith of the University of Washington Medical School in Seattle found a pattern of "craniofacial, limb, and cardiovascular defects associated with prenatal onset growth deficiency and developmental delay" in children of alcoholic mothers, now called fetal alcohol syndrome, It has significant symptom overlap with several other entirely unrelated neurodevelopmental disorders. It has been discovered that iron supplementation in baby formula can be linked to lowered I.Q. and other neurodevelopmental delays.

There is no treatment for intellectual disability but there are plenty of services offered for those diagnosed to help them function in their everyday lives. Professionals will sometimes work out an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP), which documents the child's needs, as well as the services that would best help them specifically. Speech, physical, and occupational therapy may be offered. Intellectually disabled children can be placed in special education classes through the public school system, where the school and parents will map out an Individualized Education Program (IEP). This program lays out all of the services and classes the child will become involved in during their time in school.

Treatment for individuals with schizencephaly generally consists of physical therapy (KG-ZNS with Vojta Methode), occupational therapy (with specific emphasis on neuro-developmental therapy techniques), treatment for seizures, and, in cases that are complicated by hydrocephalus, a shunt.

Metabolic disorders in either the mother or the child can cause neurodevelopmental disorders. Two examples are diabetes mellitus (a multifactorial disorder) and phenylketonuria (an inborn error of metabolism). Many such inherited diseases may directly affect the child's metabolism and neural development but less commonly they can indirectly affect the child during gestation. (See also teratology).

In a child, type 1 diabetes can produce neurodevelopmental damage by the effects of excess or insufficient glucose. The problems continue and may worsen throughout childhood if the diabetes is not well controlled. Type 2 diabetes may be preceded in its onset by impaired cognitive functioning.

A non-diabetic fetus can also be subjected to glucose effects if its mother has undetected gestational diabetes. Maternal diabetes causes excessive birth size, making it harder for the infant to pass through the birth canal without injury or it can directly produce early neurodevelopmental deficits. Usually the neurodevelopmental symptoms will decrease in later childhood.

Phenylketonuria, also known as PKU, can induce neurodevelopmental problems and children with PKU require a strict diet to prevent mental retardation and other disorders. In the maternal form of PKU, excessive maternal phenylalanine can be absorbed by the fetus even if the fetus has not inherited the disease. This can produce mental retardation and other disorders.

There are no treatment to return to its normal functions. However, there are treatments for the different symptoms.

For the Developmental symptoms, Educational intervention and speech therapy beginning in infancy could help to reduce the high risk for motor, cognitive, speech, and language delay

For theSkeletal features, referral to an orthopedist for consideration of surgical release of contractures. In addition,early referral to physical therapy could help increase joint mobility.

Lastly, Thyroid hormone replacement could help out the thyroid dysfunction

At the hospital, physicians follow standard protocol for managing seizures. Cluster seizures are generally controlled by benzodiazepines such as diazepam, midazolam, lorazepam or clonazepam. The use of oxygen is recommended in the United States, but in Europe it is only recommended in cases of prolonged epileptic status.

Emanuel Syndrome does not have a cure, but individual symptoms may be treated. Assessments of individual systems, such as the cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, orthopedic, and neurological may be necessary to determine the extent of impairment and options for treatment.

There is no cure for this syndrome. Treatment is supportive and symptomatic. All children with Mowat–Wilson syndrome required early intervention with speech therapy, occupational therapy and physical therapy.

To treat the trigonocephaly, expanding the distance between orbits using springs seems to work. It allows enough space for the brain to grow and it creates a normal horizontal axis of the orbits and supraorbital bar. The endoscopic surgery started to become popular since the early 90's, but it has some technical limitations (only strip cranictomy is possible). There have been few attempts to go beyond the limits.

Aesthetic outcomes of metopic surgery have been good. Surgery does not have a perfect outcome because there will most likely be minor irregularities. Sometimes reoperations are needed for the severe cases. Trying to hollow out the temporal, and the hypoterlorism are very hard to correct. The hypotelorism usually stays not corrected and in order to correct the temporal hollowing, a second operation is most likely needed.