Prevalence of Language, Speech, and Hearing Disorders in an

This study was designed to determine the prevalence of primary language, speech, and hearing disorders in a black, urban preschool population. In assess ing the disorders, linguistically and culturally sensitive screening materials and scoring procedures were devised by the investiga ors. For children who failed speech and language screenings, standardized tests were administered; allowances were made for cultural, linguistic, and developmental issues. Of the 796 children screened, this study focused on the 719 black children, 368 females and 351 males, who ranged in age from 3 through 5 years. For 100 children, or 13.9 % of the population, who failed the screenings, full diagnostic evaluations were administered and identified 36 children, or 5.6%, with communicative disorders. Of this 5.6%, the prevalences of language, speech, and hearing disorders were 2.6, 1.5, and 1.4%, respectively. The male-female ratios were 1.7:1, 0.8:1, and 5.0:1, respectively; it was 1.6:1 for all disorders. These findings are discussed in the contexte of existing data and their implications. While there have been several studies on the prevalence of communi cative disorders in school-aged children, little data have been reported on the prevalence of speech and language disorders in preschool childre