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https://revistacefac.org.br/article/doi/10.1590/1982-0216/20262835225
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Original Articles

Motor speech characteristics in verbal children with autism spectrum disorder

Características dos aspectos motores de fala em crianças verbais com Transtorno do Espectro Autista

Beatriz Marchi de Carvalho; Beatriz de Lellis Rossi; Thais Rosa dos Santos; Simone Aparecida Lopes-Herrera

http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/1982-0216/20262835225 Revista CEFAC, vol.28, n3, e5225, 2026
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Abstract

Purpose: to verify which possible motor speech characteristics can be observed in verbal children with an exclusive diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) without motor speech complaints.

Methods: the final sample consisted of 20 verbal children, all Brazilian Portuguese speakers, of both sexes, aged 36 to 72 months (3 to 6 years), with an exclusive medical diagnosis of ASD. The speech-language-hearing version of the Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) Checklist was applied to all children included in the study in a playful context to verify their speech characteristics. The scoring was based on a numerical scale, assigning a value of 0 for "never presented" and 1 for the categories "presented" or "currently presents". Finally, a descriptive analysis of the data was performed.

Results: speech characteristics indicative of CAS or other motor speech disorders had a lower incidence in children with ASD, while language and sensory issues were more frequently observed in the study sample.

Conclusion: children with a sole diagnosis of ASD, without global motor and/or speech complaints, obtained low scores on a checklist developed to detect CAS characteristics.

Keywords

Apraxias; Speech; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Speech Sound Disorder; Child Language

Resumo

Objetivo: verificar quais possíveis características motoras de fala podem ser observadas em crianças verbais com diagnóstico exclusivo de Transtorno do Espectro Autista (TEA) sem queixas motoras de fala.

Métodos: a amostra final foi de 20 crianças, todas falantes do Português Brasileiro, de ambos os sexos, com idades entre 36 e 72 meses (3:00 e 6:00 anos), com diagnóstico médico exclusivo de TEA e que fossem verbais. Para verificar as características de fala das crianças participantes, a versão para fonoaudiólogos do Checklist de Apraxia de Fala na Infância (AFI) foi aplicada a todas as crianças incluídas no estudo em um contexto lúdico. A pontuação baseou-se em uma escala numérica, atribuindo-se valor 0 para “nunca apresentou” e 1 para as categorias “apresentou” ou “apresenta atualmente”. Por fim, realizou-se uma análise descritiva dos dados obtidos.

Resultados: verificou-se que as características de fala indicativas de um quadro de AFI ou algum outro Transtorno Motor de Fala (TMF) tiveram menor incidência nas crianças com TEA, enquanto questões de linguagem e sensoriais foram mais observadas na amostra do estudo.

Conclusão: crianças com TEA como diagnóstico exclusivo, sem queixas motoras globais e/ou de fala, obtiveram baixa pontuação num Checklist desenvolvido para detectar características de AFI.

Palavras-chave

Apraxias; Fala; Transtorno do Espectro Autista; Transtorno Fonológico; Linguagem Infantil

Referencias

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Submitted date:
10/06/2025

Accepted date:
15/09/2025

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