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Speech, expressive language, and verbal cognition of preschool children with cerebral palsy in Iceland
Author(s) -
SIGURDARDOTTIR SOLVEIG,
VIK TORSTEIN
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
developmental medicine and child neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.658
H-Index - 143
eISSN - 1469-8749
pISSN - 0012-1622
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-8749.2010.03790.x
Subject(s) - dysarthria , psychology , nonverbal communication , cerebral palsy , audiology , intelligence quotient , cognition , gross motor function classification system , verbal learning , developmental psychology , medicine , psychiatry
Aim The aim of this study was to describe speech, expressive language, and verbal cognition of children with cerebral palsy (CP). Method A population study included 152 Icelandic children with congenital CP (74 males, 78 females; mean age 5y 5mo, range 4y–6y 6mo). Children who spoke in sentences, phrases, or one‐word utterances were categorized as verbal. Speech was classified as normal, mild dysarthria, or severe dysarthria. Cognition was reported as IQ (Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence – Revised) or developmental quotient (DQ). Results Most children (81%) had spastic CP and bilateral symptoms (76%); 74 (49%) were at Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) level I, 27% at levels II and III, and 24% at levels IV and V ( p <0.001). One hundred and twenty‐eight children (84%) communicated verbally whereas 24 were nonverbal. Nonverbal status and severe dysarthria were associated with greater motor impairment (GMFCS; p <0.001). Twenty‐five children (16%) had severe dysarthria. Most (88%) of the nonverbal children had multiple disabilities compared with 18% of the verbal group ( p <0.001). Median (interquartile range) verbal IQ was 93 (73–104) and performance IQ 77 (61–94; p <0.001). Sixty‐eight children (45%) had normal verbal cognition and almost a quarter of the children with severe dysarthria had a full‐scale IQ/DQ of 70. Interpretation Most children with CP express sentences and almost half of them have normal verbal IQ. Nonverbal status frequently indicates multiple impairments whereas severe dysarthria may be associated with normal cognition.