Eczema Associated With Childhood Speech Disorder

Pediatric eczema was significantly associated with a higher risk of speech disorder, reported Dr. Mark A. Strom and his coauthors from Northwestern University, Chicago.

A retrospective analysis of 354,416 children in 19 U.S. population–based cohorts found that the prevalence of speech disorder was 4.7% among the children with eczema (95% confidence interval, 4.5%-5.0%), compared with 2.2% among those without eczema (95% CI; 2.2%-2.3%).

Results from a multivariate analysis showed that eczema was associated with increased odds of speech disorder (adjusted odds ratio = 1.81 [1.57-2.05]; P less than .001). Mild (1.36 [1.02-1.81]; P = .03) and severe (3.56 [1.70-7.48]; P less than .001) eczema were associated with higher risk of speech disorder, the investigators said.

The findings were based on results from the 2003-2004 and 2007-2008 National Survey of Children’s Health, and the 1997-2013 National Health Interview Survey.

Read the study in the Journal of Pediatrics.