[Early identification of children with developmental language disorders - when and how?].
Children with developmental language disorders have a high risk for their cognitive, social, and emotional development. Therefore, they should be identified and treated as early as possible. This paper reviews the possibilities and limits of methods for such early identification. Language screenings during the first 3 years of life are described and appraised with respect to their diagnostic accuracy. The overview indicates that the current stage of language development can be estimated with high reliability by means of parent questionnaires. The possibility of identifying children with developmental language disorders early on is limited. Precursors and first steps of language acquisition correlate with later language abilities, although the relationship is weak and predicting further language development in a individual child is not possible. At the end of the second year of life, however, late talkers can be identified; these children are at risk of language impairment. But not until the end of the third year can sufficient detection of language-impaired children succeed. Parent questionnaires are the most reliable screening instruments for evaluating language abilities during the first 3 years.
Klinik für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie, Psychosomatik und Psychotherapie, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, München. suchodoletz@lrz.uni-muenchen.de
Waldemar
W
von Suchodoletz
D002675:Child, Preschool; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D018479:Early Intervention, Educational; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007805:Language Development Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D007808:Language Therapy; D008403:Mass Screening; D010290:Parents; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires