Development curves of communication and social interaction in individuals with cerebral palsy.

Aim: To determine development curves of communication and social interaction from childhood into adulthood for individuals with cerebral palsy (CP).

Method: This Pediatric Rehabilitation Research in the Netherlands (PERRIN)-DECADE study longitudinally assessed 421 individuals with CP, aged from 1 to 20 years at baseline, after 13 years (n=121 at follow-up). Communication and social interactions were assessed using the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales.

Reliability of the Dutch-language version of the Communication Function Classification System and its association with language comprehension and method of communication.

Aim: The aims of this study were to determine the intra- and interrater reliability of the Dutch-language version of the Communication Function Classification System (CFCS-NL) and to investigate the association between the CFCS level and (1) spoken language comprehension and (2) preferred method of communication in children with cerebral palsy (CP).

Method: Participants were 93 children with CP (50 males, 43 females; mean age 7y, SD 2y 6mo, range 2y 9mo-12y 10mo; unilateral spastic [n=22], bilateral spastic [n=51], dyskinetic [n=15], ataxic [n=3], not specified [n=2]; Gross Motor Function Classification System level I [n=16], II [n=14], III, [n=7], IV [n=24], V [n=31], unknown [n=1]), recruited from rehabilitation centres throughout the Netherlands. Because some centres only contributed to part of the study, different numbers of participants are presented for different aspects of the study.

Language comprehension in nonspeaking children with severe cerebral palsy: Neuroanatomical substrate?

Background And Aims: To identify relations between brain abnormalities and spoken language comprehension, MRI characteristics of 80 nonspeaking children with severe CP were examined.

Methods: MRI scans were analysed for patterns of brain abnormalities and scored for specific MRI measures: white matter (WM) areas; size of lateral ventricles, WM abnormality/reduction, cysts, subarachnoid space, corpus callosum thinning and grey matter (GM) areas; cortical GM abnormalities, thalamus, putamen, globus pallidus and nucleus caudatus and cerebellar abnormalities. Language comprehension was assessed with a new validated instrument (C-BiLLT).

Spoken language comprehension of phrases, simple and compound-active sentences in non-speaking children with severe cerebral palsy.

Background: Children with severe cerebral palsy (CP) (i.e. 'non-speaking children with severely limited mobility') are restricted in many domains that are important to the acquisition of language.

Comprehension of spoken language in non-speaking children with severe cerebral palsy: an explorative study on associations with motor type and disabilities.

Aim: To assess spoken language comprehension in non-speaking children with severe cerebral palsy (CP) and to explore possible associations with motor type and disability.

Method: Eighty-seven non-speaking children (44 males, 43 females, mean age 6y 8mo, SD 2y 1mo) with spastic (54%) or dyskinetic (46%) CP (Gross Motor Function Classification System [GMFCS] levels IV [39%] and V [61%]) underwent spoken language comprehension assessment with the computer-based instrument for low motor language testing (C-BiLLT), a new and validated diagnostic instrument. A multiple linear regression model was used to investigate which variables explained the variation in C-BiLLT scores.

Reliability and validity of the C-BiLLT: a new instrument to assess comprehension of spoken language in young children with cerebral palsy and complex communication needs.

In clinical practice, a variety of diagnostic tests are available to assess a child's comprehension of spoken language. However, none of these tests have been designed specifically for use with children who have severe motor impairments and who experience severe difficulty when using speech to communicate. This article describes the process of investigating the reliability and validity of the Computer-Based Instrument for Low Motor Language Testing (C-BiLLT), which was specifically developed to assess spoken Dutch language comprehension in children with cerebral palsy and complex communication needs.

Developmental trajectories of receptive and expressive communication in children and young adults with cerebral palsy.

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the developmental trajectories of expressive (speech) and receptive (spoken and written language) communication by type of motor disorder and intellectual disability in individuals with cerebral palsy (CP).

Method: The development of 418 participants (261 males, 157 females; mean age 9y 6mo [SD 6y 2mo], range 1-24y; Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) level I [n=206], II [n=57], III [n=59], IV [n=54], V [n=42]) was followed for 2 to 4 years in a longitudinal study. Communication performance was measured using the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales.

Assessing comprehension of spoken language in nonspeaking children with cerebral palsy: application of a newly developed computer-based instrument.

This paper describes the development of an instrument to assess comprehension of spoken language in children with severe cerebral palsy (CP) who cannot speak, and for whom standard language assessment measures are not appropriate due to severe motor impairment. This instrument, the Computer-Based instrument for Low motor Language Testing (C-BiLLT), was administered to 42 children without disabilities (aged 14 months to 60 months) and to 18 children with severe CP (age 19 months to 71 months). Preliminary data showed that the instrument was acceptable to the children.