What causes toddler speech delay?
There are many possible causes of speech delay. They could be:
Receptive language disorder - where a kid does not understand what is said to them and so, they cannot respond to what is asked of them.
Expressive Language disorder - where a kid understands what is said to them but are not able to express themselves.
Virtual autism - where a kid shows signs of autism spectrum disorder due to too much tv in their childhood.
Nonverbal autism - where a kid cannot understand/express themselves in verbal or non-verbal communication.
What are the major differences between cerebral palsy and autism?
Those two conditions are very different in many ways.
In many cases, the cause of cerebral palsy is known. In contrast, the cause of autism is currently unknown to science. The most common causes of cerebral palsy are infection during pregnancy, oxygen deprivation or trauma during birth, and head trauma very early in life. Genetic causes play a small (but nonzero) role in cerebral palsy.
The causes of autism remain largely unknown. We know that vaccines do NOT cause autism. We know that genetics are strongly linked to autism. In fact, genes play a much larger role in autism than cerebral palsy.
About one third of people with cerebral palsy have epilepsy (recurrent seizures), but this is not common in autism.
Cerebral palsy is primarily a movement disorder, causing stiff muscles, weak muscles, poor coordination, and other movement problems. This can inhibit speaking, but the impact on speech is indirect and mediated by lack of control over breathing, vocal cords, and mouth muscles. Cerebral palsy can also affect vision and hearing and, less often, cognition.
In contrast, autism is primarily a cognitive disorder. People with autism often have no ability to speak or have a severe problem with speech, but this is caused by problems understanding and producing language, and it is not due to muscle problems. Autism is often associated with some degree of clumsiness, but it is not a movement disorder (unlike cerebral palsy). Autism has a generally larger effect on moods and behavior.
Let's also examine the similarities between autism and cerebral palsy: They are both discovered at roughly the same age, usually. Cerebral palsy is usually discovered a little earlier, at perhaps 6 months to 2 years of age. Autism is discovered a little later, usually by 5 years of age.
Both conditions are highly variable, with some symptoms present in some children but not others. Both conditions can be very severe or hardly noticeable.
To oversimplify: If someone is in a wheelchair or on crutches, they more likely have cerebral palsy. If someone cannot speak but has no movement problems, they more likely have autism. Keep in mind, many people with cerebral palsy do not need crutches, and many people with autism can talk.
These are just the classic presentations of more severe cases of each disorder.
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