Expressive language disorder

Expressive Language Disorder The scores obtained from standardized individually administered measures of expressive language development are substantially below those obtained from standardized measures of both nonverbal intellectual capacity and receptive language development. The disturbance may be manifest clinically by symptoms that include having a markedly limited vocabulary, making errors in tense, or having difficulty recalling words or producing sentences with developmentally appropriate length or complexity.

Using standardized measures, the patient's scores of expressive language development are materially lower than those of both nonverbal intellectual capacity and receptive language development. Clinically, the patient may have severely limited vocabulary, make errors of tense, recall words poorly or produce sentences that are shorter or less complex than is developmentally appropriate.

This disorder interferes with educational or occupational achievement or with social communication.

It does not fulfill criteria for a Mixed Receptive-Expressive Language Disorder or a Pervasive Developmental Disorder.

If the patient also has Mental Retardation, environmental deprivation or a speech-motor or sensory deficit, the problems with language are worse than you would expect with these problems.

Associated Features:

Language difficulties are in excess of those usually associated with these problems.

Cause:

Three to 5% percent of all children will possess expressive language disorder. The child has difficulty understanding and using language. The cause of this disorder is unknown. Problems with receptive skills begins before the age of 4.

Treatment: Direct therapeutic intervention for speech and language difficulties, together with and psychotherapy, if necessary, are the best approaches to this type of language disorder. Therefore, l earning disorders are treated with specialized educational methods. In addition to special classroom instruction at school, students with learning disorders frequently benefit from individualized tutoring which focuses on their specific learning problem.