What are the early signs of childhood apraxia of speech?
Early signs of CAS can sometimes be noticed in toddlers, although diagnosis is usually made after age 3 when speech development becomes clearer. Some common early indicators include:
- Limited babbling or reduced variety of sounds in infancy.
- Delayed first words or very few spoken words compared to peers.
- Difficulty combining sounds to form words.
- Inconsistent errors in speech attempts (saying a word correctly once but not again).
- Trouble imitating simple sounds or words, even with cues.