One of the prime characteristics of autism is speech delays. Many children who are on the autism spectrum are non-verbal; they essentially do not communicate with words.
It might not come as a surprise then that scientists have just concluded a study in which they claim to be able to diagnose autism in young children with 86% accuracy by listening to their babbling.
The US scientists analysed nearly 1,500 day-long vocal soundtracks from battery-powered recorders attached to the clothing of 232 children aged between 10 months and 4 years.
In total more than three million individual child utterances were used in the research, the study notes.
The study focused on 12 specific sound parameters associated with vocal development.The most important were those involving “syllabification” – the ability of children to produce well-formed syllables with rapid movements of the jaw and tongue.
Experts believe these sounds form the foundation of words.
In autistic children up to four years old, there was a mismatch between the expected parameter values and age.
As the article points out, these findings may have important ramifications in the screening process of young children. Much of the diagnostic process these days relies on caregivers filling out questionnaires. These surveys rely heavily on subjective reports, which, at times, are not error-free. Having an objective measure that is 86% accurate as part of the screening and evaluation process is something to be excited about.
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