Can ADD be linked to language delay??

[sleepyhorse]

As some of you know ds who is nearly 3 has been refered to paediatrician by SALT. Initially we thought ds may have ASD as he has language delay and is a bit of a day dreamer, has his own agenda etc etc but now me and dh are thinking it might be more like ADD as the trait that stands out the most is his very short attention span and can be quite hyper at times. Also we have noticed he plays very well with other children hence not so convinced it is autism now. But the question is can a toddler have ADD with language delay??

Hi Sleepyhorse, I would imagine so as my ds2 has speech and language difficulties, hfa and adhd x

It is quite common for children to have both ASD and ADD. They don't tend to diagnose ADD until the child is a bit older. Obviously the paediatrician will give you a better idea. Do you have a date yet for appointment?

Yes .... was told it's common in kids with ADD/ADHD. My son is recently dx ADHD aged 7. He had a speech and language delay, but no SALT as not deemed severe enough. He still finds it hard to 'get the words out' iyswim, also common with his dx (he's also dyslexic)

sleepyhorse

There are many issue which can cause language acquisition delay, and until the age of maturation (7 - 8 years old) it is not possible to determine whether any child will grow out of these problems as part of their own natural development. We all develop different cognitive skills and abilities at different ages and different rates until the age of maturation.
There are many issues which can cause language development delay, which is why Speech and Language Pathologists have to prove that they have kept up to date with recent research to continue practicing every 3 or 4 years.

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) and ADD/ ADHD can have similar symptoms especially at a young age, but have very different medical causes.
Those who have APD have a listening disability, not being able to process what they hear, all sound based information which includes speech. We learn to speak by processing what others (parents, siblings, friends, family) say and then reprocessing or reproducing these sounds in our own form of speech. Par of the problems those who have APD experience is processing the gaps between the sounds which can make up a word, or even processing the gap between words. so processing and understanding the verbal language can be difficult, and it does take time to develop the coping strategies such as effective lip reading, and reading body langauge which can help APD work around their listening disability.

Those who have ADD/ADHD have attention problems of a lack of ability to concentrate or focus long enough to process the a wide range of information, which includes sound based information. similar problems as outlined above but due to a different type of cognitive deficit or disorder.

It is possible to have co-morbid (co existing) APD and ADHD, which is even more difficult to diagnose.

These developmental issues have a genetic origin and at least one biological parent will share some of the issues.