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Project overview

Development of babbling, speech and language is studied in around 100 children with congenital or early adverse conditions such as cleft palate (CL±L), hearing loss (HL), neurological developmental disorder (ND) or extreme prematurity as well as around 70 children with typical development in separate projects. The development of methods for the assessment of babbling and early speech/expressive language as well as the evaluation of early intervention are included.

The project EDDiS started several years ago to increase knowledge about why not all children operated for cleft palate develop speech difficulties. Previous projects (see page Speech Outcome in Cleft Palate) have shown that the surgical protocol does not seem to have a decisive effect.

In the first project (Early development of speech and hearing, TUTH), it was investigated whether hearing loss related to secretory otitis media (OME), which is common in cleft palate, led to problems with babbling, speech and language development and whether children with similar hearing loss without cleft palate had the same problems. The group has developed methods for observation of babbling and consonant production, studies of the measure Canonical Babbling Ratio, and evaluated babbling screening in the sub-project Jollerkoll.

Objectives

Among the most common early signs of developmental disorders in children is when their speech, language or communication do not develop as expected. Babbling is an important precursor to speech, both in typically developing children and in children with different kinds of disabilities. Deficits in babbling may predict later speech and language difficulties. The overall objectives of the project are to:

• evaluate effect of intervention for parents of young children with a late babbling start or a small expressive vocabulary
• develop and validation of methods for screening and assessment and babbling and early speech production
• examine auditory, speech, language and communication skills longitudinally from 0-3 years of age in children with known adverse conditions in childhood such as hearing loss, cleft palate, neurodevelopmental disabilities, and extreme prematurity.
• test if children without known adverse conditions, who later show developmental delay including language and communication deficits, can be identified early by evaluating a method of babbling screening.

Financing

Grants from the Swedish government under the ALF agreement
Foundation Frimurare Barnhuset, Stockholm
Aina Börjesons Research Foundation
The Hearing Research Fund
Jerringfonden
Majblomman
The Sunnerdahl Foundation for Disability
Tysta skolan Foundation
The Margit Wibel Foundation
Queen Silvia's Jubilee Fund
Linnea & Josef Carlsson Foundation
Sävstaholm Foundation

The included projects are described on the respective researcher's profile page.

Collaborators