Linguistic Production Abilities of 3-Year-Old Children Born Premature with Low Birth Weight

Abstract

Using norm-referenced and informal language sample analyses, this study describes the language production abilities of 30 children born premature with low birth weight. Only four of the subjects demonstrated clinically significant language problems at 3 years of age. The language problems of these four children did not appear to be related systematically to their birth weight, gestational age, length of neonatal hospitalization and severity of respiratory illness, socioeconomic status, family structure, or cognitive level and were best characterized by circumscribed expressive syntax difficulties.