The Effect of Schistosomiasis and Soil-transmitted Helminths on Expressive Language Skills Among Isizulu Speaking Preschool Children

Author(s):  
Xolisile Innocentia Mazibuko ◽  
Moses Chimbari

Abstract Background: Schistosomiasis and soil transmitted helminths (STH) have been associated with compromised child development. We determined the effect of schistosomiasis and STH on expressive language skills among isiZulu speaking preschool children focusing on the variables: age, gender, school and stunting. Methods: We compared, qualitatively and quantitatively the performance of a cohort of infected and non-infected children using a 2 phased approach. In phase 1 infected children were treated with praziquantel and matched with non-infected children and both groups were tested for expressive language performance. In phase 2 both groups of children were re-tested for expressive language skills using a similar but modified test. The participants were 106 preschool children between the age of 4 and 6 years,11months. The Developmental Language Test was adapted as a linguistically and culturally appropriate tool for assessing isiZulu expressive language skills. Results: The overall performance of the children in phases 1 and 2 were statistically similar. There was significant Pearson’s correlation of expressive language skills to age (0.002, P<0.01), schistosomiasis i.e. vocabulary 1 (0.024, P<0.05) and narrative skills (0.001, P<0.01) and soil-transmitted helminths i.e. vocabulary 1 (0.006, P<0.05), colours (0.029, P<0.05) and narrative skills (0.001, P<0.01) in phase 2 with small to high Cohen’s d effect size for various language subtests. Conclusion: We concluded that even mild schistosomiasis and STH may compromise the performance of preschool children on expressive language. However poor ability in following instructions may have contributed to general poor performance across the two groups tested. Diet, school effect and stunting did not influence the performance of the children on expressive language.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xolisile Innocentia Mazibuko ◽  
Moses Chimbari

Abstract Background: Schistosomiasis and soil transmitted helminths (STH) have been associated with compromised child development. We determined the effect of schistosomiasis and STH on expressive language skills among isiZulu speaking preschool children focusing on the variables: age, gender, school and stunting. Methods: We compared, qualitatively and quantitatively the performance of a cohort of infected and non-infected children using a 2 phased approach. In phase 1 infected children were treated with praziquantel and matched with non-infected children and both groups were tested for expressive language performance. In phase 2 both groups of children were re-tested for expressive language skills using a similar but modified test. The participants were 106 preschool children between the age of 4 and 6 years,11months. The Developmental Language Test was adapted as a linguistically and culturally appropriate tool for assessing isiZulu expressive language skills. Results: The overall performance of the children in phases 1 and 2 were statistically similar. There was significant Pearson’s correlation of expressive language skills to age (0.002, P<0.01), schistosomiasis i.e. vocabulary 1 (0.024, P<0.05) and narrative skills (0.001, P<0.01) and soil-transmitted helminths i.e. vocabulary 1 (0.006, P<0.05), colours (0.029, P<0.05) and narrative skills (0.001, P<0.01) in phase 2 with small to high Cohen’s d effect size for various language subtests. Conclusion: We concluded that even mild schistosomiasis and STH may compromise the performance of preschool children on expressive language. However poor ability in following instructions may have contributed to general poor performance across the two groups tested. Diet, school effect and stunting did not influence the performance of the children on expressive language.


2008 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 608 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. G. Holroyd ◽  
V. J. Doogan ◽  
M. R. Jeffery ◽  
J. A. Lindsay ◽  
B. K. Venus ◽  
...  

This experiment tested the hypothesis that relocating cattle is detrimental to their growth. The study examined the effect of having relocated cattle mixed with, or segregated from, the local acclimatised cattle at the destination property. Bos indicus cross steers (120) were allocated to three groups and were relocated, in two separate cohorts, 980 km from northern Queensland to improved pastures in central Queensland. At the start of Phase 1, the control group (C) was moved 3 months before the other two groups. The remaining two groups grazed native pastures; one group was supplemented (SR) to increase growth rate similar to that expected from improved pasture in central Queensland and the other was not supplemented (R). At the end of Phase 1, C was significantly (P < 0.05) heavier than SR, which was significantly (P < 0.05) heavier than R. At the start of Phase 2, the SR and R groups were relocated and after transportation the R and SR groups lost 12 kg or 4.4% of liveweight and 18 kg or 5.7% of liveweight, respectively; this weight loss was recovered after 5 days. All steers were reallocated to segregated (SEG) or mixed (MIX) treatment groups forming six treatments (SEG.C, SEG.R and SEG.SR and MIX.C, MIX.R and MIX.SR). There were no significant differences in liveweights within the SEG treatments by 57 days or within the MIX treatments by 106 days after relocation. There were few if any significant differences in the plasma constituents and differential leucocyte counts of the steers and most results were within physiologically normal ranges. We conclude on the basis of these results and of other experiments that the anecdotal poor performance of cattle after relocation appears to be unfounded.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 114-128
Author(s):  
Krystal Bichay-Awadalla ◽  
Cathy Huaqing Qi ◽  
Rebecca J. Bulotsky-Shearer ◽  
Judith J. Carta

The purpose of this study was to examine the longitudinal, bidirectional relationship between language skills and behavior problems in a sample of 194 preschool children enrolled in Head Start programs. Children were individually assessed using the Preschool Language Scale-5, and teachers completed the Child Behavior Checklist-Teacher Report 1½–5. Cross-lagged path models using a structural equation modeling approach tested the reciprocal associations between language skills and behavior problems over the preschool year. Findings supported a bidirectional relationship between internalizing behavior problems and expressive language skills. However, findings supported a unidirectional association between early receptive language skills and later internalizing behavior problems. Gender moderated the relationship between receptive and expressive language skills and internalizing behavior problems in such a way that the association was only significant for girls. Implications for early intervention and prevention efforts targeting language development and behavior problems were discussed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 80-106
Author(s):  
Bita Payesteh ◽  
Lizbeth H. Finestack

Abstract The purpose of this study was to better understand bilingualism in Persian-English preschool-aged children, and how their language performance across two domains of language related to their language production and parental language input. Participants were 15, 2- through 5-year old Persian-English bilingual children attending a Persian immersion preschool in the U.S. The participants completed a battery of language tasks in English and Persian and participants’ parents provided language input and production information. Data indicate that greater input in the heritage language outside school, Persian, will likely lead to better Persian skills, while greater English input may negatively affect the children’s Persian skills. Participants received consistent native-level Persian input in school, yet the results suggest that Persian as a heritage language in the U.S. may be susceptible to the same vulnerability that affects other non-mainstream languages.


2019 ◽  
Vol 59 (2) ◽  
pp. 236 ◽  
Author(s):  
Santi D. Upadhaya ◽  
Hyeok Min Yun ◽  
Kwang Young Lee ◽  
In Ho Kim

The present study tested the hypothesis that altering the ratio of omega-6 (n-6) to omega-3 (n-3) fatty acids (FAs) in the diet will improve growth performance, nutrient digestibility and blood parameters of weaner pigs. In total, 90 crossbred weaner pigs ((Yorkshire × Landrace) × Duroc, 28 days old), with an average bodyweight (BW) of 6.53 ± 0.71 kg were used in a 6-week experiment. Pigs were blocked on the basis of BW and sex and randomly allotted to one of three dietary treatments (5 pigs per pen (2 barrows and 3 gilts); 6 pens per treatment). Treatments consisted of plant-derived n-6 and n-3 FAs (15:1, 10:1 and 5:1). The experimental period was divided into three phases: Phase 1; 28–35 days of age, Phase 2; 36- 49 days of age and Phase 3; 50–70 days of age. Supplementation of varied n-6:n-3 FA ratios in the diet of weaned pigs showed linear increases (P &lt; 0.05) in BW and average daily gain during Phases 1 and 2. The feed:gain ratios reduced linearly (P &lt; 0.05) during Phase 1 and tended to reduce (P = 0.08) during Phase 2 as the ratio of n-6:n-3 FA decreased from 15:1 to 5:1. However, the overall performance of weaners was not affected by the n-6:n-3 FA ratio. Dry matter and nitrogen (N) digestibility increased linearly (P &lt; 0.05) and energy digestibility tended (P = 0.089) to increase linearly with the reduction of n-6:n-3 FA ratio from 15:1 to 5:1 during Week 3 and, in Week 6, dry-matter digestibility increased (P &lt; 0.05) linearly, whereas energy digestibility tended to increase with a decreasing n-6:n-3 FA ratio in the diet. The high-density lipid cholesterol showed a significant (P &lt; 0.05) linear increase at Week 3 and a tendency to increase at Week 6, but no significant effects on other serum lipids were observed. The dietary n-6:n-3 FA ratio did not have a significant effect on white blood cell, lymphocyte, immunoglobulin G and tumour necrosis factor-α concentrations or faecal microbial counts. In conclusion, the reduction of n-6:n-3 FA ratio from 15:1 to 5:1 in the diet did not affect the overall performance of weaning pigs. However, it showed a positive effect on the growth performance of pigs during Phases 1 and 2.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Gorkem Ertugrul ◽  
Filiz Aslan ◽  
Gonca Sennaroglu ◽  
Levent Sennaroglu

<b><i>Background:</i></b> Young children are able to explore new objects and practice language through the acquisition of motor skills that lead to their overall development. Congenital hearing loss and total vestibular loss may contribute to the delay in speech and motor skill development. <b><i>Objectives:</i></b> To investigate the relationship between motor development performance, speech perception, and language performance in children with auditory brainstem implant (ABI). <b><i>Method:</i></b> Ten children, aged 4–17 years (mean age 9.76 ± 4.03), fitted with unilateral ABI for at least 2 years due to the presence of labyrinthine aplasia and rudimentary otocyst at least 1 side were included in the study. Several standardized tests, such as Bruininks-Oseretsky Motor Proficiency Test-2 (BOT-2), Children’s Auditory Perception Test Battery, Meaningful Auditory Integration Scale (MAIS), and Test of Early Language Development-3, were performed to evaluate their skills of fine motor control, balance, manual dexterity, language, and auditory perception. <b><i>Results:</i></b> A significant correlation was established between the BOT-2 manual dexterity and MAIS scores (<i>r</i> = 0.827, <i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.05) and between the manual dexterity and language skills (for expressive language, <i>r</i> = 0.762, <i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.05; for receptive language, <i>r</i> = 0.650, <i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.05). Some of the BOT-2 balance tasks, such as standing on 1 leg on a line with eyes closed, standing on 1 leg on a balance beam with eyes open, standing heel-to-toe on a balance beam, and walking forward heel-to-toe on a line, showed a strong correlation with their receptive and expressive language performance (<i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.05). <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> The current study has indicated that significantly poor manual and balance performances are associated with poor speech perception and language skills in children with ABI. The authors recommend performing a vestibular assessment before and after ABI surgery and the use of a holistic rehabilitation approach, including auditory and vestibular rehabilitation, to support development of the children with ABI.


2019 ◽  
Vol 72 (6) ◽  
pp. 442-453
Author(s):  
Kayla Gerhold ◽  
Catherine Torrington Eaton ◽  
Rochelle S. Newman ◽  
Nan Bernstein Ratner

<b><i>Purpose:</i></b> Several studies have explored relationships between children’s early phonological development and later language performance. This literature has included a more recent focus on the potential for early phonological profiles to predict later language outcomes. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> The present study longitudinally examined the nature of phonetic inventories and syllable structure patterns of 48 typically developing children at 7, 11, and 18 months, and related them to expressive language outcomes at 2 years of age. <b><i>Results:</i></b> Findings provide evidence that as early as 11 months, phonetic inventory and mean syllable structure level are related to 24-month expressive language outcomes, including mean length of utterance and vocabulary diversity in spontaneous language samples, and parent-reported vocabulary scores. Consonant inventories in particular differed at 11 and 18 months for 2-year-olds with lower versus higher language skills. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Limited inventories and syllable repertoires may add to risk profiles for later language delays.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Ceyhun Ersan

Aggression observed in early childhood is considered to be an important problem. Multiple factors may play a decisive role in children’s aggressive behaviors. The aim of this study was to examine whether the receptive and expressive language skills of preschool children (39-75 months-old) had predictive role on the levels of physical and relational aggression. The sample of the present study consists of 109 preschool children (47 girls and 62 boys). The language development levels of children in the sample were evaluated by TEDIL (Turkish Early Language Development Test) and their aggression levels were evaluated via Preschool Social Behavior Scale which were filled by their teachers. Pearson product moment correlation coefficient and stepwise regression analysis were used to analyze the data. According to the findings of the study, there was a significant and negative relationship between children’s receptive and expressive language skills and physical and relational aggression levels. The results of regression analysis revealed that physical aggression was negatively and significantly predicted by expressive language skills. In addition, relational aggression is negatively and significantly predicted by both receptive and expressive language skills. The increase in children's language skills significantly explains the decrease in physical and relational aggressive behaviors. The relationship between language skills and aggressive behaviors of Turkish preschool children was examined for the first time in this study. It is thought that the present study will contribute to the literature since it reveals the current situation in terms of the relationships between children's language skills and aggression levels and provide opportunities to make comparisons with the results of international studies.


1980 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 36-41 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary L. Hessler ◽  
Dale W. Kitchen

The Test of Language Development (Newcomer & Hammill, 1977) was administered to a purposive sample of early elementary learning disabled students in an effort to analyze their language performance. Statistically significant differences were indexed between receptive and expressive language skills for this sample. The subjects scored at the lower limits of the normal range on two subtests requiring verbal reception. Further, they scored below average on three subtests requiring verbal expression, as well as on the total language quotient. Variable functioning within the sample was noted, however.


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