SPEECH DEVELOPMENT IN A CHILD AFTER DECANNULATION - FURTHER EVIDENCE THAT BABBLING FACILITATES LATER SPEECH DEVELOPMENT

Selected children who receive long-term tracheostomies during the firs t year of life offer a possible means to study the relationship betwee n babbling and later speech development. If babbling does not facilita te later speech development (the null hypothesis), then speech should not be delayed relative to other areas of development in the first wee ks and months after the tracheostomy is removed. If babbling does faci litate later speech development (the alternative hypothesis), then spe ech should be delayed relative to other developmental domains. To bett er determine which of these hypotheses is correct, the authors of the present study investigated the speech outcome of a child, E, who was t racheostomized during and beyond the period during which babbling typi cally occurs. E's speech outcome was assessed at 6 weeks, 4 months, an d 1 year after the tracheostomy was removed. Results of the investigat ion supported the alternative hypothesis.