Children with autism spectrum disorders who do not develop phrase speech in the preschool years

Abstract

There is uncertainty about the proportion of children with autism spectrum disorders who do not develop phrase speech during the preschool years. The main purpose of this study was to examine this ratio in a population-based community sample of children. The cohort consisted of 165 children (141 boys, 24 girls) with autism spectrum disorders aged 4-6 years followed longitudinally over 2 years during which time they had received intervention at a specialized autism center. In this study, data collected at the 2-year follow-up were used. Three categories of expressive language were defined: nonverbal, minimally verbal, and phrase speech. Data from the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-II were used to classify expressive language. A secondary objective of the study was to analyze factors that might be linked to verbal ability, namely, child age, cognitive level, autism subtype and severity of core autism symptoms, developmental regression, epilepsy or other medical conditions, and intensity of intervention. The proportion of children who met the criteria for nonverbal, minimally verbal, and phrase speech were 15%, 10%, and 75%, respectively. The single most important factor linked to expressive language was the child's cognitive level, and all children classified as being nonverbal or minimally verbal had intellectual disability.

The proportion of minimally verbal children with autism spectrum disorder in a community‐based early intervention programme

“…Norrelgen et al . () identified two key barriers to documenting and understanding language outcomes for children with ASD who exit intervention programmes with minimal spoken language. First, they noted that as a group, children who use little or no spoken language have been inconsistently defined using a variety of terms including ‘minimally verbal’ (e.g.…”

“…; Norrelgen et al . ); and ‘low verbal’ (Yoder & Stone ). The common element across definitions is the specification of the maximum number of spontaneous functional words a child uses (ranging from 5–20 words) as observed during a natural language sample and/or parent report (refer to the for expanded definitions).…”

“…; Norrelgen et al . ), yet some studies are still reporting figures of up to 50% (Kjelgaard & Tager‐Flusberg ; Magiati et al . ).…”

Can Computer-Assisted Training of Prerequisite Motor Skills Help Enable Communication in People with Autism?

“…In addition to the efficacy of Point OutWords as an adjunct to usual clinical therapy for autism, the data acquired can address the following secondary questions: (1) whether and to what extent autistic pointing and dragging movements involve errors in visuomotor targeting, (2) whether and to what extent autistic vocalisations differ systematically from non-autistic vocalisations in spectral-temporal properties and other traits indicative of differences in oral motor performance, (3) whether and to what extent caregivers may be moving the computer in ways that could unconsciously influence the autistic user's choice of keys on the touchscreen keypad, (4) whether autistic children's use of Point OutWords alleviates stress in their parents and (5) whether any such improvements are specific to the previously identified subgroup of people with autism who have significant impairments in motor functioning.…”

“…Autism spectrum disorders are common, lifelong conditions, affecting approximately 1% of the population, with about a quarter of those affected nonverbal or minimally verbal [1][2][3] -that is, producing either no words at all, or some words but no phrases other than non-communicative compulsive vocalisations. Our and others' research has demonstrated strong association between autistic language delay and motor dysfunction [4][5][6][7][8][9][10].…”