Simplified Language for Down Syndrome

Overseen By Jennifer Johnson, M.S.

Age: < 18

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: Michigan State University

Disqualifiers: Acquired brain injury, cerebral palsy, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: Unknown

30 Participants Needed

Trial Summary

Do I need to stop my current medications for this trial?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications.

What data supports the effectiveness of the treatment Linguistic simplification for Down Syndrome?

The research on using plain language and nonverbal communication tools in medical settings shows that these methods can improve understanding and communication between patients and healthcare providers. This suggests that simplifying language could help people with Down Syndrome better understand and engage with their treatment. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

How is the treatment 'Linguistic simplification' for Down syndrome different from other treatments?

Linguistic simplification is unique because it focuses on simplifying language to improve communication in individuals with Down syndrome, addressing both speech-comprehensibility and grammatical deficits simultaneously, unlike traditional methods that often treat these issues separately. ^{6 7 8 9 10}

What is the purpose of this trial?

The long-term study goal is to experimentally evaluate the components (and likely active ingredients) of early language interventions for young children with Down syndrome (DS). The overall objective is to determine how single-word and telegraphic simplification affects real-time language processing and word learning in young children with DS (relative to full, grammatical utterances). The proposed project will investigate three specific aims: 1) Determine how single-word and telegraphic simplification affects language processing. 2) Determine how single-word and telegraphic simplification affects word learning. 3) Evaluate child characteristics that may moderate the effects of linguistic simplification on language processing and word learning. Aim 1 will test the hypothesis that children with DS will process grammatical utterances faster and more accurately than telegraphic or single-word utterances. Aim 2 will test the hypothesis that overall, children will demonstrate better word learning in the grammatical compared to the single-word and telegraphic conditions. Aim 3 will test the hypothesis that receptive language and nonverbal cognitive abilities will be significant moderators, such that children with stronger linguistic and cognitive skills will show the greatest benefit from grammatical input but children with lower linguistic and cognitive scores will perform similarly across conditions.

Research Team

Courtney Venker, PhD

Principal Investigator

Michigan State University

Eligibility Criteria

This trial is for young children with Down syndrome. It aims to understand how simplifying language in the form of single words or short phrases affects their ability to process and learn language compared to full sentences.

Inclusion Criteria

I have Down syndrome.

English as primary language

I am between 2 and 7 years old.

Exclusion Criteria

Acquired brain injury

Cerebral palsy

I have vision or hearing problems that haven't been corrected.

Timeline

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Experimental Manipulation

Participants are exposed to all utterance types to evaluate language processing and word learning

Baseline

Teaching Phase

Participants undergo the Teaching Phase of the Fast Mapping task to assess gaze location and word learning

Baseline

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for safety and effectiveness after the experimental manipulation

4 weeks

Treatment Details

Interventions

• Linguistic simplification

Trial Overview The study tests linguistic simplification methods, specifically comparing the effects of single-word utterances, telegraphic (short phrases) speech, and complete grammatical sentences on real-time language processing and word learning in these children.

Participant Groups

Group I: Utterance Type Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

This study uses a within-participant experimental manipulation. All participants will be exposed to all utterances types (across trials).

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

Michigan State University

Lead Sponsor

Trials

202

Recruited

687,000+

National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

Collaborator

Trials

377

Recruited

190,000+

Findings from Research

Integrating speech and grammatical interventions using recast treatment showed positive effects on speech-comprehensibility in 4 out of 6 children with Down syndrome, indicating a potential benefit of this combined approach.

Five out of 6 participants demonstrated growth in mean length of utterance (MLU) during generalization sessions, suggesting that this method may effectively enhance both speech clarity and grammatical skills in children with Down syndrome.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Simultaneous treatment of grammatical and speech-comprehensibility deficits in children with Down syndrome. Camarata, S., Yoder, P., Camarata, M.[2022]

References

1. Germany pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

TIS - Talking in Symbols. Development of a Tool for Nonverbal Communication after Language Barriers in Pediatric Oncology. [2020]

2. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

How children with cancer communicate and think about symptoms. [2013]

3. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Assessing the Plain Language Planner for Communication About Common Palliative Care Medications. [2020]

4. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A Linguistic Model of Communication Types in Palliative Medicine: Effects of Multidrug-Resistant Organisms Colonization or Infection and Isolation Measures in End of Life on Family Caregivers' Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices. [2020]

5. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Identification of limited English proficient patients in clinical care. [2021]

6. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Language development in Down syndrome: from the prelinguistic period to the acquisition of literacy. [2011]

7. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Simultaneous treatment of grammatical and speech-comprehensibility deficits in children with Down syndrome. [2022]

8. United States pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Language and communication development in Down syndrome. [2007]

9. South Africa pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Grammatical number inflection in Arabic-speaking children and young adults with Down syndrome. [2021]

10. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Linguistic profile of individuals with Down syndrome: comparing the linguistic performance of three developmental disorders. [2008]