(Universidade Federal do Pará, 2015-08) COSTA, Elson Ferreira; CAVALCANTE, Lília Iêda Chaves; DELL'AGLIO, Débora Dalbosco
Purpose: to evaluate the development of language, according to the Denver Developmental Screening Test, of children enrolled in elementary schools in Belém. Methods: the association between language development and family background, environmental and personal characteristics was tested. This study is cross-sectional and exploratory descriptive. A questionnaire was applied to parents to collect personal, contextual and family data. The socioeconomic level was measured using an instrument specially designed for poor families. Results: from the 319 children assessed, 59.2% presented result of potential delay in language. The variables that showed a statistically significant association with language development were paternal education (p=0.003), maternal age (p=0.03) and family poverty level (p=0.003). Conclusion: this study highlights the importance of implementing stimulation and systematic monitoring programs, and it alerts to the negative interference of the risk factors in this process.
