Low Rates of Pointing in 18-Month-Olds at Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Extremely Preterm Infants: A Common Index of Language Delay?

Sansavini, Alessandra; Guarini, Annalisa; Zuccarini, Mariagrazia; Lee, Jessica Zong; Faldella, Giacomo; Iverson, Jana M.

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02131

Cited by 20 publications

(24 citation statements)

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“…As for the identification of early predictors (Q1), some studies examined the role of biological and environmental risk factors for DLD [ 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 ] and many provided potentially useful data about early gestural, communicative, lexical, and grammatical predictors [ 75 , 76 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even if none of the selected studies directly focused on the problem of the most appropriate age range for the use of screening and diagnostic tools (Q2), almost all of them provided indirect indications to answer Q2 [ 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 , 92 , 93 , 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 , 98 , 99 , 100 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2021

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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.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2021

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“…The strong relation between early pointing gestures and language skills is not only found in TD children, but also in children with high risk for developmental disorders, such as: siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder (Baron-Cohen et al, 1992;Parladé and Iverson, 2015;Iverson et al, 2018;Sansavini et al, 2019), extremely preterm infants (Benassi et al, 2018;Sansavini et al, 2019), and children with Down Syndrome (te Kaat-van den Os et al, 2015). However, there are hardly any studies about early pointing behavior within a comparatively large group of children, namely children with language delay (LD) and developmental language disorder (DLD).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Longitudinal studies with siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder often comprise three different outcome groups: Siblings without developmental disorders, siblings with LD, and siblings with autism spectrum disorder (Parladé and Iverson, 2015;Iverson et al, 2018). From these studies we know that not only the siblings who turned out to be within the autism spectrum themselves, but also the siblings with a later diagnosis of LD produce a lower number of gestures early in their development and have a lower rate of initial growth in early gestures than TD children (Parladé and Iverson, 2015;Iverson et al, 2018;Sansavini et al, 2019). For children with LD, Bello et al (2018) found that conspicuously more of them do not produce declarative pointing gestures compared to TD children.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrated Communication System: Gesture and Language Acquisition in Typically Developing Children and Children With LD and DLD

et al. 2020

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Gesture and language development are strongly connected to each other. Two types of gestures in particular are analyzed regarding their role for language acquisition: pointing and iconic gestures. With the present longitudinal study, the predictive values of index-finger pointing at 12 months and the comprehension of iconic gestures at 3;0 years for later language skills in typically developing (TD) children and in children with a language delay (LD) or developmental language disorder (DLD) are examined. Forty-two monolingual German children and their primary caregivers participated in the study and were followed longitudinally from 1;0 to 6;0 years. Within a total of 14 observation sessions, the gestural and language abilities of the children were measured using standardized as well as ad hoc tests, parent questionnaires and semi-natural interactions between the child and their caregivers. At the age of 2;0 years, 10 of the 42 children were identified as having a LD. The ability to point with the extended index finger at 1;0 year is predictive for language skills at 5;0 and 6;0 years. This predictive effect is mediated by the language skills of the children at 3;0 years. The comprehension of iconic gestures at 3;0 years correlates with index-finger pointing at 1;0 year and also with earlier and later language skills. It mediates the predictive value of index-finger pointing at 1;0 year for grammar skills at 5;0 and 6;0 years. Children with LD develop the ability to understand the iconicity in gestures later than TD children and score lower in language tests until the age of 6;0 years. The language differences between these two groups of children persist partially until the age of 5;0 years even when the two children with manifested DLD within the group of children with LD are excluded from analyses. Beyond that age, no differences in the language skills between children with and without a history of LD are found when children with a manifest DLD are excluded. The findings support the assumption of an integrated speech-gesture communication system, which functions similarly in TD children and children with LD or DLD, but with a time delay.

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“…Two key areas of development characterize a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), hereafter “autism”: differences in social-communication (e.g., eye contact and interest in peers) and restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior (RRBs; e.g., fixated interests and stereotyped motor movements) ( 1 ). For children born preterm, there is a risk of early markers of autism, such as atypical eye gaze and protodeclarative pointing ( 2 ), being misattributed to the long-term effects from their preterm birth ( 3 ), as these can also be observed in children born preterm who do not go on to be diagnosed with autism ( 4 , 5 ), despite the higher than expected prevalence of autism in children born preterm ( 6 ). This has the potential to delay diagnosis and appropriate support.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Comparison of Children Born Preterm and Full-Term on the Autism Spectrum in a Prospective Community Sample

Luu¹,

Jellett²,

Yaari³

et al. 2020

Front. Neurol.

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Introduction: Previous research suggests children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD or “autism”) born extremely and very preterm face substantially delayed development than their peers born full-term. Further, children born preterm are proposed to show a unique behavioral phenotype, which may overlap with characteristics of autism, making it difficult to disentangle their clinical presentation. To clarify the presentation of autism in children born preterm, this study examined differences in key indicators of child development (expressive language, receptive language, fine motor, and visual reception) and characteristics of autism (social affect and repetitive, restricted behaviors).Materials and Methods: One fifty-eight children (136 full-term, twenty-two preterm) diagnosed with autism, aged 22–34 months, were identified prospectively using the Social Attention and Communication Surveillance tools during community-based, developmental surveillance checks in the second year of life. Those identified at “high likelihood” of an autism diagnosis were administered the Mullen Scales of Early Learning and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule.Results: The children born preterm and full-term did not differ significantly in their fine motor, visual reception, expressive language, or receptive language skills. No significant differences in social affect and repetitive and restrictive behavior traits were found.Discussion: The findings of this study differs from previous research where children diagnosed with autism born very or extremely preterm were developmentally delayed and had greater autistic traits than their term-born peers. These null findings may relate to the large proportion of children born moderate to late preterm in this sample. This study was unique in its use of a community-based, prospectively identified sample of children diagnosed with autism at an early age. It may be that children in these groups differ from clinic- and hospital-based samples, that potential differences emerge later in development, or that within the autism spectrum, children born preterm and full-term develop similarly. It was concluded that within the current sample, at 2 years of age, children diagnosed with autism born preterm are similar to their peers born full-term. Thus, when clinicians identify characteristics of autism in children born preterm, it is important to refer the child for a diagnostic assessment for autism.

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Low Rates of Pointing in 18-Month-Olds at Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder and Extremely Preterm Infants: A Common Index of Language Delay?

Cited by 20 publications

References 78 publications

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

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

Integrated Communication System: Gesture and Language Acquisition in Typically Developing Children and Children With LD and DLD

A Comparison of Children Born Preterm and Full-Term on the Autism Spectrum in a Prospective Community Sample

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