[Language development disorders--studies of preschool children of the Leipzig special language school]

Children with severe speech disorders were examined to determine the causes of their abnormal speech development. Thirty-seven preschool and school-age children were followed up and results compared. All children had low intelligence quotients, with most of the children coming from low social backgrounds. However, both of these factors (intelligence and low social background) had no influence on the improvement of speech levels after therapy. Two-thirds of the children with moderate conductive hearing losses showed improvement after therapy, so that the effect of this hearing loss was believed to be a significant cause for the development of speech disorders. An early evaluation must be performed by a qualified phoniatrican or pediatric audiologist when children are 1.5 years old and are not able to construct words.