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Discriminating Down Syndrome and Fragile X Syndrome based on language ability*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 December 2012

LIZBETH H. FINESTACK ,
AUDRA M. STERLING  and
LEONARD ABBEDUTO
LIZBETH H. FINESTACK*
Affiliation:
Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences, University of Minnesota
AUDRA M. STERLING
Affiliation:
Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison
LEONARD ABBEDUTO
Affiliation:
MIND Institute, University of California, Davis
*
Address for correspondence: Lizbeth H. Finestack, Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences, University of Minnesota, 164 Pillsbury Dr. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455. e-mail: Finestack@umn.edu.
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Abstract

This study compared the receptive and expressive language profiles of verbally expressive children and adolescents with Down Syndrome (DS) and those with Fragile X syndrome (FXS) and examined the extent to which these profiles reliably differentiate the diagnostic groups. A total of twenty-four verbal participants with DS (mean age: 12 years), twenty-two verbal participants with FXS (mean age: 12 years), and twenty-seven participants with typical development (TD; mean age = 4 years) completed standardized measures of receptive and expressive vocabulary and grammar, as well as a conversational language sample. Study results indicate that there are distinct DS and FXS language profiles, which are characterized by differences in grammatical ability. The diagnostic groups were not differentiated based on vocabulary performance. This study supports the existence of unique language profiles associated with DS and FXS.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Child Language , Volume 40 , Special Issue 1: Atypical development , January 2013 , pp. 244 - 265
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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Footnotes

[*]

We extend our gratitude to the participants and their families who made this project possible. Preparation of this manuscript was supported by the following grant awards from the National Institutes of Health: R01HD024356, T32HD007489 and P30HD003352.

References

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