Communication disorders

Around 5-10% of people younger than 18 years old have some form of communication issues, including voice, speech, language, social, or swallowing. The number is higher in younger children. Communication disorder has a wide spectrum. It can range from issues with understanding other people’s speech to troubles with expressing themselves. Common symptoms include using a very limited vocabulary, having trouble pronouncing certain sounds, speaking in a discontinuous way, other people having difficulty understanding them, or significant developmental delay of understanding language or speaking.

One communication disorder that might be easier to neglect is Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder. While a person may not have issues generating words and sentences, the issues lie in using socially appropriate communication in different contexts, understanding subtle social cues in language, following social rules when speaking, or expressing themselves in a social context. Some of these symptoms may overlap with autism spectrum disorder, so it’s important to rule that out first.

If you suspect your child has some of the symptoms above, you may need to see a speech-language pathologist. It’s also important to communicate with your primary healthcare provider and school. Since the first three years of a child is the most sensitive to acquiring language, parents need to expose children to language as much as possible during that period.