Developmental Language Disorder: Early Predictors, Age for the Diagnosis, and Diagnostic Tools. A Scoping Review

Abstract

Background. Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is frequent in childhood and may have long-term sequelae. By employing an evidence-based approach, this scoping review aims at identifying (a) early predictors of DLD; (b) the optimal age range for the use of screening and diagnostic tools; (c) effective diagnostic tools in preschool children. Methods. We considered systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and primary observational studies with control groups on predictive, sensitivity and specificity values of screening and diagnostic tools and psycholinguistic measures for the assessment of DLD in preschool children. We identified 37 studies, consisting of 10 systematic reviews and 27 primary studies. Results. Delay in gesture production, receptive and/or expressive vocabulary, syntactic comprehension, or word combination up to 30 months emerged as early predictors of DLD, a family history of DLD appeared to be a major risk factor, and low socioeconomic status and environmental input were reported as risk factors with lower predictive power. Optimal time for screening is suggested between age 2 and 3, for diagnosis around age 4. Because of the high variability of sensitivity and specificity values, joint use of standardized and psycholinguistic measures is suggested to increase diagnostic accuracy. Conclusions. Monitoring risk situations and employing caregivers’ reports, clinical assessment and multiple linguistic measures are fundamental for an early identification of DLD and timely interventions.

Speech and Language Therapy Service for Multilingual Children: Attitudes and Approaches across Four European Countries

“…As opposed to previous-more narrow-definitions of DLD as a disorder that is reflective of a child's intrinsic difficulty to acquire language (e.g., [6]), the CATALISE Consensus group [5] recently agreed that the presence of neurobiological and/or environmental risk factors does not rule out a diagnosis of DLD. The potential risk factors that are most frequently associated with DLD include, among others, a family history of language impairment, male gender, and a low level of parental education and/or socioeconomic status (SES; [7][8][9]).…”

“…Italian version of Q11 (used in the Italian version of the questionnaire spread in Italy) 6. German version of Q11 (used in the German version of the questionnaire spread in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland) 7. This question is present in the German version only 8.…”

Visual Implicit Learning Abilities in Infants at Familial Risk for Language and Learning Impairments

“…Mastery of language can be difficult for some children. Indeed, around 7% of preschool children experience difficulties with expressive and/or receptive oral language and receive a diagnosis of developmental language disorder [1,2]. After school entry, language difficulties may also involve written language, leading to significant impairments in reading skills, also known as developmental dyslexia [3][4][5].…”

“…Although developmental language disorders is usually diagnosed around the age of four [2], and developmental dyslexia can only be diagnosed after school entry, early risk signs of these conditions can arise in the first years of life. Infants approach language acquisition with a set of early basic-level cognitive skills that have cascading effects on language development [9].…”

“…In the current study, we aimed to extend available evidence of associations between SL and RL abilities and the development of language and literacy skills by testing preverbal, typically developing (TD) infants and infants at high risk (HR) of developing language learning impairment, where risk is defined by having at least one first-degree relative with a diagnosis of developmental language disorders and/or developmental dyslexia. Indeed, it is known that language-related disorders run in families [45] and that infants at familial risk have both higher genetic and environmental liability to be diagnosed for language learning impairment compared to children not-at risk [2,46,47]. Therefore, studying infants who have at least one parent or sibling with developmental language disorders and/or developmental dyslexia allows insight into the developmental trajectory of the disorder, and has often been used as a research strategy to study its underlying causes (e.g., [48]).…”