Speech, language, and reading in 10-year-olds with cleft: Associations with teasing, satisfaction with speech, and psychological adjustment

S�rvold, Tone Kristin; Feragen, Kristin Billaud; Aukner, Ragnhild; Stock, Nicola Marie

Abstract

© 2017 American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association. Background: Despite the use of multidisciplinary services, little research has addressed issues involved in the care of those with cleft lip and/or palate across disciplines. The aim was to investigate associations between speech, language, reading, and reports of teasing, subjective satisfaction with speech, and psychological adjustment. Design: Cross-sectional data collected during routine, multidisciplinary assessments in a centralized treatment setting, including speech and language therapists and clinical psychologists. Participants: Children with cleft with palatal involvement aged 10 years from three birth cohorts (N = 170) and their parents. Outcome Measures: Speech: SVANTE-N. Language: Language 6-16 (sentence recall, serial recall, vocabulary, and phonological awareness). Reading: Word Chain Test and Reading Comprehension Test. Psychological measures: Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and extracts from the Satisfaction With Appearance Scale and Child Experience Questionnaire. Results: Reading skills were associated with self- and parent-reported psychological adjustment in the child. Subjective satisfaction with speech was associated with psychological adjustment, while not being consistently associated with speech therapists' assessments. Parent-reported teasing was found to be associated with lower levels of reading skills. Having a medical and/or psychological condition in addition to the cleft was found to affect speech, language, and reading significantly. Conclusions: Cleft teams need to be aware of speech, language, and/or reading problems as potential indicators of psychological risk in children with cleft. This study highlights the importance of multiple reports (self, parent, and specialist) and a multidisciplinary approach to cleft care and research.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 1, 2015
• Publication Date: Jan 1, 2017
• Deposit Date: Feb 23, 2015
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 28, 2018
• Journal: Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal
• Print ISSN: 1055-6656
• Electronic ISSN: 1545-1569
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 54
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 153-165
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1597/14-242
• Keywords: cleft palate, young people, speech impediment, bullying, adjustment, visible difference
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/897643
• Publisher URL: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1597/14-242
• Additional Information: Additional Information : © 2017. Reprinted by permission of SAGE Publications
• Contract Date: Jun 8, 2016