[Source: Science Daily]

Over the course of a three-year study, 64 percent of children initially diagnosed with autism were found to also have apraxia. The study also showed that the commonly used Checklist for Autism Spectrum Disorder (CASD) accurately diagnoses autism in children with apraxia.
“Children with apraxia have difficulty coordinating the use of their tongue, lips, mouth and jaw to accurately produce speech sounds, so that each time they say the same word, it comes out differently, and even their parents have difficulty understanding them,” said Dr. Cheryl Tierney, associate professor of pediatrics.
It’s estimated that one in 68 children in the United States has autism and one to two in 1,000 have apraxia. With increased recognition and improved evaluation measures, more children are being identified with autism and apraxia. Developmental experts have long noted autism and apraxia seem to frequently coincide.
The researchers studied 30 children between the ages of 15 months and five years who were referred to the Penn State Hershey Pediatric Developmental Communication Assessment Clinic for concerns regarding speech, language or autism. After an initial diagnostic screening, follow-up testing showed that 63.6 percent of children initially diagnosed with autism also had apraxia and 36.8 percent of children initially diagnosed with apraxia also had autism.
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