Biomedical subjects

April A Benasich

Publications and source records attributed to April A Benasich.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2002

Infant discrimination of rapid auditory cues predicts later language impairment.

The etiology and mechanisms of specific language impairment (SLI) in children are unknown. Differences in basic auditory processing abilities have been suggested to underlie their language deficits. Studies suggest that the neuropathology, such as atypical patterns of cerebral lateralization and cortical cellular anomalies, implicated in such impairments likely occur early in life. Such anomalies may play a part in the rapid processing deficits seen in this disorder. However, prospective, longitudinal studies in infant populations that are critical to examining these hypotheses have not been done. In the study described, performance on brief, rapidly-presented, successive auditory processing and perceptual-cognitive tasks were assessed in two groups of infants: normal control infants with no family history of language disorders and infants from families with a positive family history for language impairment. Initial assessments were obtained when infants were 6-9 months of age (M=7.5 months) and the sample was then followed through age 36 months. At the first visit, infants' processing of rapid auditory cues as well as global processing speed and memory were assessed. Significant differences in mean thresholds were seen in infants born into families with a history of SLI as compared with controls. Examination of relations between infant processing abilities and emerging language through 24 months-of-age revealed that threshold for rapid auditory processing at 7.5 months was the single best predictor of language outcome. At age 3, rapid auditory processing threshold and being male, together predicted 39-41% of the variance in language outcome. Thus, early deficits in rapid auditory processing abilities both precede and predict subsequent language delays. These findings support an essential role for basic nonlinguistic, central auditory processes, particularly rapid spectrotemporal processing, in early language development. Further, these findings provide a temporal diagnostic window during which future language impairments may be addressed.

Apgar Score↗

PubMed2002

The importance of rapid auditory processing abilities to early language development: evidence from converging methodologies.

The ability to process two or more rapidly presented, successive, auditory stimuli is believed to underlie successful language acquisition. Likewise, deficits in rapid auditory processing of both verbal and nonverbal stimuli are characteristic of individuals with developmental language disorders such as Specific Language Impairment. Auditory processing abilities are well developed in infancy, and thus such deficits should be detectable in infants. In the studies presented here, converging methodologies are used to examine such abilities in infants with and without a family history of language disorder. Behavioral measures, including assessments of infant information processing, and an EEG/event-related potential (ERP) paradigm are used concurrently. Results suggest that rapid auditory processing skills differ as a function of family history and are predictive of later language outcome. Further, these paradigms may prove to be sensitive tools for identifying children with poor processing skills in infancy and thus at a higher risk for developing a language disorder.

Auditory Perception↗

PubMed2002

Developmental language learning impairments.

Developmental language learning impairments (LLI) are one of the most prevalent of all developmental disabilities, can occur in children for a wide variety of reasons, and have been shown to co-occur frequently with other developmental social, emotional and behavioral disorders, as well as with academic achievement problems. Research pertaining to developmental LLI of unknown origin, with an emphasis on the continuum between oral and written language impairment, is the focus of this review. Given the complexity of language learning, research has focused on multiple levels of analysis, including linguistic, neuropsychological, genetic, neurobiological, and remediation studies. To date, the vast majority of data on LLI derive from studies focused on a single level of analysis. Although attempts have been made to integrate data across studies and multiple levels of analysis, this has proven to be problematic, given the heterogeneity of the subject populations used to study LLI, as well as the differences in ages, degree of impairment, and types of impairment included in each study. Given that LLI is a complex developmental disability, it is suggested that future research would benefit from taking a multiple levels of analysis approach with the same individuals, incorporating mathematical models designed to analyze dynamically changing complex systems, and studying individual differences in language learning, prospectively and longitudinally, throughout the most dynamic stages of the process.

Brain↗