Definition

Mixed typical developmental disorders are language disorders that are a mixture of expressive language disorders and receptive language disorders. This condition occurs in around 10–15% of children under 3 years.

Language disorders in children have 2 forms, namely:

• Expressive language disorder is a condition where children find it difficult to express intentions and messages to other people
• Receptive language disorder is a condition where children have difficulty understanding the intentions and messages of other people, both written and verbal

Children with mixed language disorders have difficulty understanding other people's words and using words to convey their meaning. Children with language disorders can speak and understand their language.

Stages of Child Development

Stages of children's speech development based on the Indonesian Pediatrician Association (IDAI), include:

• 0-6 months old
  • When the baby is born, he can only cry
  • At the age of 2-3 months babies can make sounds "aah" and "uuh" or what is called cooing
  • Approaching the age of 6 months, babies can respond when their name is called and recognize emotions in the tone of speech.
  • Babies can babble using single syllables such as 'papapa', 'dadada' or 'bababa'
• 6-12 months old
  • At the age of 6-9 months, babies understand names and can babble
  • At the age of 9-12 months, babies can say mama or papa with meaning and imitate the words they hear
• 12-18 months old
  • Children can say 3-6 words with meaning
  • Children can follow 1-step commands
  • Children can nod, shake their heads, point
  • At the age of 18 months, the vocabulary that children understand is around 5-50 words
• 18-24 months old
  • Children speak a lot and almost every day have new vocabulary
  • Children can make sentences consisting of 2 words
  • Children can follow 2-step commands
• 2-3 years old
  • Most of the words spoken by children can be understood by everyone
  • At the age of 3, children can make sentences consisting of 3 or more words
  • Children start to enjoy singing
• Age 3-5 years old
  • Children can say name, age and gender
  • Children can use long sentences (more than 4 words)
  • Children can tell stories about what they have experienced in detail

Causes

Children need to hear, see, understand, and remember the everyday language used by the people around them to have language skills. Children also need to be physically able to produce sounds and use the language.

Problems developing receptive abilities (understanding other people's intentions) generally begin before age 4. Some mixed language disorders are caused by trauma to the brain and these conditions are often confused with childhood developmental disorders.

Language disorders can occur in children who have developmental disorders, such as those on the autism spectrum; hearing loss, and learning disorders. Language disorders can also be caused by nervous system disorders, called aphasia.

Language disorders are different from delayed speech. Children who speak late can learn language like other children, but this process occurs when the child is older. Meanwhile, children with language disorders have abnormal language skills.

Risk Factor

Several risk factors for child language disorders include:

• Don't read story books to children
• Using two languages (bilingualism)

Symptoms

Children with mixed language disorders have symptoms of receptive and expressive language disorders.

Symptoms of receptive language disorder include:

• Difficulty understanding the meaning of other people's words
• It was difficult to follow orders directed at him
• It was difficult to organize his thoughts
• Difficult to answer questions
• Difficulty identifying the names of objects around him
• It's difficult to understand other people's perspectives

Symptoms of expressive language disorders include:

• It is difficult to have vocabulary and form sentences, or the sentences spoken by children tend to be simple, short, or do not use appropriate words
• It's hard to find the right words when talking, so you often use substitute words like "hmm"
• Has a smaller vocabulary than children his age
• Using the same words over and over again for all questions
• Using the wrong language structure

Children with mixed language disorders have both symptoms. Children can have all the symptoms or only some of the symptoms above. The symptoms experienced can vary from mild to severe.

Children with language disorders can have difficulty socializing with their environment. In some cases, language disorders are the cause of children showing behavioral problems.

Diagnosis

A diagnosis of mixed language disorder can be made after the child has taken a standardized examination of his language abilities. This can be done by a speech pathologist or speech therapist. An audiometric examination must ensure that the child's hearing is normal because hearing loss is a common cause of language disorders.

Management

Speech and language therapy is the best approach for children's language disorders. Counseling, such as talk therapy, is also recommended to address emotional and behavioral problems.

Children's recovery varies based on the underlying cause of this disorder. Disorders caused by trauma to the brain or other structural problems have lower recovery rates and children are more likely to experience language impairment in the long term. Many children who experience language disorders are also hampered in learning and have difficulty reading.

The Role of Parents

Parents and the child's environment have a big role in the child's language development. Steps that parents can take to optimize language skills include:

• Be diligent in talking and communicating with children, starting in infancy.
• Read stories to children to increase their vocabulary. Parents can point to the picture and say the name of the object pointed to.

Complications

Difficulty understanding or using language can affect social interactions and the ability to live independently as an adult. Children can also experience difficulty reading, affecting their education and future employment. The impact of all this can cause children to experience depression, anxiety, and other behavioral problems.

Prevention

Preventing language disorders is quite difficult because the specific cause of these disorders has not yet been discovered. However, you can prevent worsening by immediately taking your child to a speech pathologist or doctor if your child experiences the above symptoms. Providing stimulation and monitoring your child's development according to the Maternal Child Health book can also help you to provide sufficient stimulation and detect symptoms more quickly.

When to See a Doctor?

Parents worried about developing their child's language skills need to have their child checked by a doctor. Discuss your concerns so your doctor can help you direct you to a speech therapist.

Children diagnosed with a language disorder need to see a neurologist to determine whether the cause of this disorder can be treated.

According to Pediatrician Association, warning signs of children's language development that parents need to be aware of include:

• Age 0-6 months, does not turn his head when his name is called from behind and does not babbling (saying meaningless syllables, like mamama bababa)
• Age 6–12 months, no pointing with fingers and reduced facial expressions
• Age 12-18 months, does not say meaningful words until age 16 months
• Age 18-24 months, does not say sentences consisting of 2 words that can be understood until 24 months.

If your child experiences these symptoms or experiences a decrease in language skills, the child needs to be consulted at the nearest health facility.

Looking for more information about other diseases? Click here!