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Are there specific speech, language, and/or communication diagnoses that are considered neurodevelopmental?

Martha S. Burns, PhD, CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow

August 1, 2024

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Question

Are there specific speech, language, and/or communication diagnoses that are considered neurodevelopmental?

Answer

There are several speech, language, and communication diagnoses that fall under the category of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs). Common diagnostic terms for school-age children include Specific Language Impairment (SLI), Speech Sound Disorder (SSD), Developmental Language Disorder (DLD), Communication Disorder (CD), and Social Pragmatic Communication Disorder (SPCD). These terms are used variably depending on whether the services are provided in school settings under district IEP guidelines or in clinical/medical settings following DSM-5 and ICD-11 terminology.

All these diagnoses involve long-standing differences in speech/language acquisition or communication development. While SLI and DLD are typically used when there is no known causal condition such as Down Syndrome, many speech, language, and communication differences frequently co-occur with other Neurodevelopmental Disorders like Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

This Ask the Expert is an edited excerpt from the course, 20Q: Neuroscience Applications for Differential Diagnosis and Intervention in School-Aged Children, authored by Martha S. Burns, PhD CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow.

 


martha s burns

Martha S. Burns, PhD, CCC-SLP, ASHA Fellow

Dr. Martha S. Burns is the Director of Neuroscience Education at Carnegie Learning Corporation and served as Adjunct Associate Professor at Northwestern University in the department of communication sciences and disorders for over 25 years. Dr. Burns is a Fellow of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and has received honors from Northwestern University, Evanston Hospital Corporation, the American Speech Language Hearing Foundation and St. Xavier University. She has authored 4 books and over 100 book chapters and articles. Dr. Burns is the author of 2020 Plural Publications neuroscience textbook Cognitive and Communication Interventions. Dr. Burns is a consultant to many school districts around the world. She presents many invited in-services, keynotes, webinars, and continuing education courses world-wide each year on neuroscience applications to language and reading intervention.


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