II. Epidemiology
- Prevalence: 219% of children ages 2-7 years old in the U.S.
III. Diagnosis
IV. Causes: Primary Language Disorders
- Developmental Speech and Language Delay
- Delayed speech despite normal comprehension, intelligence, Hearing, socialization, articulation
- Most common of the primary language disorders
- Expect normal speech by school age with parent and therapist intervention
- Expressive Language Disorder
- Presents in similar fashion to Developmental Speech and Language Delay
- Active intervention is critical as this does not correct spontaneously
- Receptive Language Disorder
- Delayed speech characterized as sparse, agrammatic, and with poor articulation
- Example: Does not respond to "point to the picture of the girl?" or "where is the dog?"
- Response to intervention is less than for other primary language disorders and longterm speech development is abnormal
V. Causes: Secondary Language Disorders
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Autism
- Associated with Echolalia, pronoun reversal, language regression and impaired communication
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Cerebral Palsy
- Associated with Incoordination of Tongue, Hearing Loss, cognitive delay
- Childhood Apraxia of Speech
- Difficulty creating sound in the correct order (speech is difficult to understand)
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Dysarthria
- Severity ranges from slurred articulation to completely incomprehensible speech
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Hearing Loss
- Before spoken language established: Distorted speech sounds
- Aftrer spoken language established: Gradual decline in articulation, and lack of progress in expanding vocabulary
- Cognitive Disorder
- See Developmental Milestones
- Overall Developmental Delay
- Selective Mutism
- Refusal to speak in certain social situations
VI. Resources
- Books for parents
- Schwartz (2003) New Language of Toys
- Hamaguchi (2010) Childhood Speech, Language, and Listening Problems
- Web
- American Speech-Language Hearing Association
VII. Management: Referral
- Indications
- Consultants
- Speech and language pathologist
- Early intervention program
- Audiologist
- Public school (as of age 3 years old)
VIII. Prognosis
- Early diagnosis and treatment prior to school age results in best outcomes