Speech & Language Therapy | BTG Dyslexia Center

What is Speech & Language Therapy?

☐ Not meeting language and communication milestones

☐ Not meeting cognitive milestones

☐ Difficulty with concentration

☐ Difficulty Sequencing play

☐ Difficulty understanding spoken language (e.g. following directions or understanding what is said)

☐ Difficulty expressing spoken language (e.g. choosing the right words or speaking with words out of order)

☐ Unclear speech compared to same-age peers

☐ Difficulty with hearing

☐ Oral motor skills (e.g. not controlling food or liquid, not able to consistently say the sounds in words the same way every time)

☐ Feeding: difficulty swallowing or choking

☐ Decreased voice volume

☐ Difficulty with reading

☐ Needs an alternate communication device

☐ displays frustration when not able to communicate clearly

Nearly 1 in 12 (7.7%) U.S. children ages 3-17 has had a disorder related to voice, speech, language, or swallowing in the past 12 months.1

Among children who have a voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorder, 34% of those ages 3-10 have multiple communication or swallowing disorders, while 25.4% of those ages 11-17 have multiple disorders.1

Boys ages 3-17 are more likely than girls to have a voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorder (9.6% compared to 5.7%).1

The prevalence of voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorders is highest among children ages 3-6 (11.0%), compared to children ages 7-10 (9.3%), and children ages 11-17 (4.9%).1

Nearly 1 in 10, or 9.6%, of Black children (ages 3-17) has a voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorder, compared to 7.8% of White children and 6.9% of Hispanic children.1

More than half (55.2%) of U.S. children ages 3-17 with a voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorder received intervention services in the past year.1 White children (ages 3-17) with a voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorder are more likely to have received intervention services in the past 12 months, compared to Hispanic and Black children, at 60.1%, 47.3%, and 45.8% respectively.1

Boys (ages 3-17) with a voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorder are more likely than girls to receive intervention services, at 59.4% and 47.8%, respectively.1

Among children ages 3-17 who have a voice, speech, language, or swallowing disorder, those with speech or language problems, 67.6% and 66.8% respectively, are more likely to receive intervention services, compared to those who have a voice disorder (22.8%) or swallowing problems (12.7%).1