Does screen time in young children contribute to the development of primary language disorders? A case-control study in Ille-et-Vilaine
Background - Children are exposed to screens at an early age, even though such use may influence their psychomotor development. Objective - To assess the association between children’s exposure to screens—such as television, computers, video game consoles, tablets, or smartphones—and primary language disorders.Method - Our multicenter case-control study included 167 children aged 3.5 to 6.5 years, born between 2010 and 2012 and diagnosed with primary language disorders, and 109 controls without language disorders. The questionnaires were completed by their parents, recruited through 16 general practice offices and 27 speech-language pathologist offices in Ille-et-Vilaine. The data were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression models and presented as adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI).Results - We found that cases (44.3%) and controls (22.0%) who were exposed to screens in the morning before school were three times more likely to develop primary language disorders (aOR = 3.40, 95% CI [1.60–7.23]). And when this risk was combined with rarely or never discussing screen content with their parents (aOR = 2.14 [1.01–4.54]), they were six times more likely to develop primary language disorders (aOR = 5.86 [1.44–23.95]).Conclusion - Children who were exposed to screens in the morning before school and who rarely, if ever, discussed screen content with their parents had a sixfold increased risk of developing primary language disorders.
Author(s): Collet Manon, Gagnière Bertrand, Rousseau Chloé, Chapron Anthony, Fiquet Laure, Certain Chystèle
Publishing year: 2020
Pages: 2-9
Weekly Epidemiological Bulletin, 2020, n° 1, p. 2-9
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