Gj. Whitehurst et Je. Fischel, EARLY DEVELOPMENTAL LANGUAGE DELAY - WHAT, IF ANYTHING, SHOULD THE CLINICIAN DO ABOUT IT, Journal of child psychology and psychiatry and allied disciplines, 35(4), 1994, pp. 613-648
Early developmental language delay is characterized by slow developmen
t of language in preschoolers. The condition is frequent among two- an
d three-year-olds, causes concern among parents, and generates differe
nces of opinion as to significance among informed professionals. Poore
r long-term outcomes are much more likely if language delay persists u
ntil the later preschool years, and if the delay is not specific to la
nguage and/or includes problems in understanding. Specific language de
lay in the preschool period is better characterized as a risk factor t
han a disorder; most children with specific language delay recover to
the normal range by five years of age.