Identifying & Diagnosing DLD
DLD is likely to be diagnosed when children’s slow development of talking and understanding
- Falls behind that of other children the same age
- Interferes with everyday life and school learning
- Is not due to hearing loss, acquired brain injury, physical abnormality, autistic spectrum disorder or rare syndrome
- Is not part of a general developmental delay that affects all other skills
In other words, DLD is largely an exclusionary diagnosis i.e. all other possible explanations for the child’s language issues (such as hearing impairment or autism) must first be ruled out. This does not necessarily mean extensive assessments if it is obvious that there are no other significant issues. In most cases, a speech and language therapist can diagnose DLD, but children who have significant difficulties with understanding language, behaviour and/or social skills will probably need to be assessed by a multidisciplinary team led by a developmental paediatrician.
Diagnosis is a medical procedure and so technically can only be carried out by appropriately qualified health professionals. But, in theory, anyone can identify that a child is slow to talk or has difficulties with talking or understanding. You may notice that your child
- Doesn’t talk very much
- Uses immature language
- Struggles to find the right words and/or
- Doesn’t seem to understand other people
All too often, a language difficulty is the last thing parents and teachers consider. The low profile of DLD and other forms of SLCN means that parents and professionals tend to focus on more obvious problems the child may have, such as shyness, anxiety, reading difficulties or behavioural issues.
Read more about the signs of DLD, language checklists and milestones.
