Walsh, I. P., Scullion, M., Burns, S., MacEvilly, D., & Brosnan, G. (2014). Identifying demographic and language profiles of children with a primary diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties, 19(1), 59-70. https://doi.org/10.1080/13632752.2013.854963
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common diagnosis among children seeking speech therapy, yet language concerns are rarely prioritized among usual ADHD treatment programs. Language abilities of children with ADHD can range greatly. The complexities of these differences make describing an overall language presentation difficult. Difficulties in the social use of language (pragmatics), speech fluency, and reading comprehension are also linked with other conditions that are often co-occurring in children with ADHD, thus making differentiating specific features across diagnoses challenging.
This study aims to establish explored the language profiles of 40 children aged 9 to 12 years with a primary diagnosis of ADHD who were receiving services at a mental health clinic. Notably, a majority of participants had a secondary diagnosis, with autism and dyslexia being among the most common. Almost 75% of participants had language difficulties that were previously unidentified. The majority had both receptive and expressive difficulties. Almost one third demonstrated reading difficulties as well. Unfortunately, no general ADHD-specific language profile could be described.
These results indicate that children with ADHD who are receiving services in a clinic are very likely to have language difficulties as well. The variety of language performance across measures supports the notion that children with ADHD may benefit from SLP assessment of language skills.
