title: Identification of early risk factors for language impairment.
abstract: The current study is a population-based investigation of birth risk factors for school-identified specific language impairment (SLI). The sample consisted of 244,619 students (5,862 SLI) born in Florida between 1989 and 1990 who were in the Florida public school system at ages 6-7. Epidemiological measures of effect were used to investigate both individual- and population-level risk for SLI. Very low birth weight (VLBW), low 5-min Apgar score, late or no prenatal care, high birth order, and low maternal education were associated with highest individual-level risk. Low maternal education and having an unmarried mother was associated with the highest population-level risk. The results not only suggest who needs to be screened for a future developmental disability, but identify a group of children who are at-risk for an SLI placement in school. Early intervention services for these children may be the most effective approach to reducing the incidence of school-identified SLI.
authors.affiliation: Department of Special Education, Vanderbilt University, Box 328 Peabody College, Nashville, TN 37203, USA. tina.stanton-chapman@vanderbilt.edu
authors.forename: Tina L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Stanton-Chapman
authors.forename: Derek A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Chapman
authors.forename: Nicolette L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Bainbridge
authors.forename: Keith G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Scott
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005431:Florida / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007806:Language Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012307:Risk Factors; D012572:School Health Services