CHILDHOOD APRAXIA OF SPEECH AND HISTORY, DEVELOPMENT AND BEHAVIOR MARKERS

Abstract

ABSTRACT Introduction: Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is a neurological disorder in which the accuracy and consistency of speech movements are affected, due to the difficulty on speech motor planning and programming, in the absence of neuromuscular impairment. Since CAS has a hard comorbidity rate with other neurodevelopmental disorders, a speech-language evaluation needs to include history, early developmental and behavioral markers, driving diagnosis and/or referral (ASHA, 2007; SHRIBERG et al, 2017). Objective: To identify historical, developmental and behavioral markers, involved in the diagnosis of CAS. Methods: The study consists of a documentary analysis of speech therapy services reports of 12 children (10 boys and 2 girls), between 4 and 10 years and suspected of CAS. Results: All children presented historical and developmental markers described to CAS, in the integrative perspective: 5 with developmental, 1 historical and 4 with both. The lack of history information highlights the importance of detailed and dynamic anamnesis, with integration of these data effectively. It were compiled 49 behavioral markers. From 12 children, 5 presented impulsivity, psychomotor agitation, irritation and exacerbated stillness and 4 presented difficulty in eye contact and inattention. Conclusion: Behavioral assessment scales provide formal markers congruent with those described in manuals such as the DSM-V, which along with the historical and developmental ones, as predicted by the integrative model, lead the evidence-based clinical reasoning to the differential and early diagnosis of CAS and effective referral, especially in younger or nonverbal children. DESCRIPTORS: Articulation Disorders. Apraxia. Speech. Development. History. Behavior.