Stuttering is characterized as disruptions in the forward flow of speech often marked by repetitions or prolongations of syllables or sounds. Although consensus is emerging that stuttering is a neurodevelopmental disorder, a single, direct cause of stuttering remains elusive. Within a neurodevelopmental framework, the emergence of stuttering in early childhood could mark an atypical neurodevelopmental pathway from which some children do not recover. Some children continue to stutter into adolescence, after which the problem becomes one of lifelong management. This entry defines stuttering and explores factors related to stuttering and treatment options.

Stuttering Defined

Stuttering typically begins during the preschool years, but four out of five children recover from stuttering prior to adolescence, often without receiving any form of treatment. More young boys begin to stutter in ...

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