
Motor Influences on Communication: Comparisons Between Down Syndrome and Fragile X Syndrome
Author(s) -
Elizabeth Will,
Jane Roberts
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
american journal on intellectual and developmental disabilities
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.735
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1944-7515
pISSN - 1944-7558
DOI - 10.1352/1944-7558-126.6.460
Subject(s) - fragile x syndrome , gross motor skill , intervention (counseling) , down syndrome , psychology , motor skill , developmental psychology , motor behavior , phenotype , audiology , neuroscience , medicine , biology , genetics , psychiatry , gene
Motor skills, an important foundation for language and communication, are considerably delayed in children with Down syndrome (DS) and fragile X syndrome (FXS). However, the impact of these impairments on expressive and receptive communication and the phenotypic specificity of these associations remains unknown. Participants included 37 with DS and 37 age and developmentally matched children with FXS. Syndrome-specific motor and communication profiles emerged, with higher communication scores seen in the DS versus FXS on, but lower gross motor scores. Significant associations between domains of motor and communication were identified for both groups with additional phenotype-specific patterns. Findings demonstrate the importance of early motor abilities for communication in DS and FXS. Implications for phenotypic specificity and targeted intervention are discussed.