The Relationship between Early Reading Skills and Speech and Language Performance in Young Children with Cleft Lip and Palate

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To examine the early reading skills of young children with cleft lip and palate and to examine the relationship between early reading skills and speech and language performance. A total of 56 children participated in the study: 28 children with cleft lip and palate and 28 noncleft children matched for age (mean age, 5 years 7 months), gender, and months of formal schooling. The two groups of children were compared (t tests) on the Test of Early Reading-3. Pearson product moment correlations were performed to examine separately the relationship between early reading skills and speech production abilities and between early reading skills and receptive and expressive language abilities for the two groups. Statistically significant group differences were noted on the Test of Early Reading-3. The mean score of 99 obtained by the group of children with cleft lip and palate was within normal limits compared with the norms for the Test of Early Reading-3; however, 14% of the children with cleft lip and palate scored outside the normal range on the Test of Early Reading-3. Statistically significant correlations were obtained between early reading skills and speech production abilities and between early reading skills and language abilities. Children with cleft lip and palate differed from noncleft peers in speech and early reading skills. Children with the most severe speech problems were the children with the poorest performance on the Test of Early Reading-3. Management of children with cleft lip and palate should include early identification of and intervention for delays in speech, language, and reading.