Perinatal Developmental vs. Postnatally Acquired Pediatric Communication, Language, and Speech Disorders: Similarities and Differences
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.13112/pc.994Keywords:
developmental language disorders, acquired language disorders, communication, perinatal, childrenAbstract
Developmental and acquired pediatric communication, language, and speech disorders can significantly impact a child’s development. Perinatal and postnatally acquired disorders differ in terms of the timing of injury, etiology, localization of damage, the degree of structural and functional brain development, and the level of communication and speech and language skills. In perinatal disorders, language acquisition occurs within altered neural architecture, while acquired disorders involve damage to already established neural structures and functional networks. In early childhood, both hemispheres are involved in language processing, and functional language networks are organized differently than in older children and adults. The more mature the structural and functional neural organization at the time of injury, the more the resulting deficits will resemble those seen in adults and will be more selective. These distinctions lead to differences in clinical manifestation, and understanding them has critical implications for diagnosis, therapy, and prognosis.
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