Language in young children with neurofibromatosis-1: relations to functional communication, attention, and social functioning. Res Dev Disabil 2014 Oct;35(10):2495-504
Date
07/06/2014Pubmed ID
24995687DOI
10.1016/j.ridd.2014.06.016Scopus ID
2-s2.0-84903697543 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 19 CitationsAbstract
In this study, the language abilities of 30 children with Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1) aged 4-6 years were examined using a standardized measure of language. Relations of language to multiple parental report measures of functional communication, social skills, and attention problems were investigated. Difficulties in core language skills were observed, and more than 1/3 of the children struggled on at least one language index. Language abilities were significantly related to parental report of functional communication, social interaction and communication, and social skills, such that language difficulties may be a risk factor for communication and social interaction challenges and communication-related adaptive behavior in children with NF1. Though receptive language abilities were an area of particular difficulty for many children with NF1, they were not significantly related to parental ratings of social functioning and functional communication. Few significant relations were found between language and parent-reported attention problems, although some trends were noted. Hence attention difficulties in children with NF1 may contribute to, but do not appear to fully account for, language difficulties. In sum, there is an increased risk of language difficulties for young children with NF1, and lab-measured language difficulties appear to relate to everyday communication and social interaction functioning.
Author List
Brei NG, Klein-Tasman BP, Schwarz GN, Casnar CLAuthor
Bonita Klein-Tasman BA,MA,PhD Professor in the Psychology department at University of Wisconsin - MilwaukeeMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AttentionChild
Child, Preschool
Communication
Female
Humans
Language Development Disorders
Male
Neurofibromatosis 1
Social Behavior
Social Skills
