Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative review

Despite neonatal intensive care advancements and quality improvements, preterm infants often experience delays in speech and language development during early childhood. The etiological pathway of language delays is multifactorial, including younger gestational age at birth, male sex, pregnancy comp...

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Main Authors: Ju Sun Heo, Ee-Kyung Kim
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: The Korean Pediatric Society 2024-12-01
Series:Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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Online Access:http://www.e-cep.org/upload/pdf/cep-2024-00087.pdf
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author Ju Sun Heo
Ee-Kyung Kim
author_facet Ju Sun Heo
Ee-Kyung Kim
author_sort Ju Sun Heo
collection DOAJ
description Despite neonatal intensive care advancements and quality improvements, preterm infants often experience delays in speech and language development during early childhood. The etiological pathway of language delays is multifactorial, including younger gestational age at birth, male sex, pregnancy complications including gestational diabetes mellitus and preeclampsia, organic pathology from neonatal morbidities, environmental factors of the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and prolonged hospitalization, home environment including socioeconomic status and parental education, and parent-infant interactions. As early language experiences and environments are crucial for the development of language processing, strategies to support language development should be implemented from the NICU onward. This study aimed to summarize evidence- based strategies for language development through an extensive review of nutrition, NICU environment, language and sound exposure, developmental care interventions, and family-centered care. Promoting breastfeeding, increasing parent-infant interactions in a single-family room setting, nurturing the language environment via parental book reading and language interventions, and parent-integrated interventions in the NICU could potentially enhance language development among preterm infants. These supportive strategies can be integrated through family-centered care, which recognizes parents as primary caregivers and collaborative partners.
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spelling doaj-art-359cdb87f97a4f61bdc9cf0dcf7059612025-08-20T02:30:34ZengThe Korean Pediatric SocietyClinical and Experimental Pediatrics2713-41482024-12-01671265166310.3345/cep.2024.0008720125555737Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative reviewJu Sun Heo0Ee-Kyung Kim1 Department of Pediatrics, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea Department of Pediatrics, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, KoreaDespite neonatal intensive care advancements and quality improvements, preterm infants often experience delays in speech and language development during early childhood. The etiological pathway of language delays is multifactorial, including younger gestational age at birth, male sex, pregnancy complications including gestational diabetes mellitus and preeclampsia, organic pathology from neonatal morbidities, environmental factors of the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and prolonged hospitalization, home environment including socioeconomic status and parental education, and parent-infant interactions. As early language experiences and environments are crucial for the development of language processing, strategies to support language development should be implemented from the NICU onward. This study aimed to summarize evidence- based strategies for language development through an extensive review of nutrition, NICU environment, language and sound exposure, developmental care interventions, and family-centered care. Promoting breastfeeding, increasing parent-infant interactions in a single-family room setting, nurturing the language environment via parental book reading and language interventions, and parent-integrated interventions in the NICU could potentially enhance language development among preterm infants. These supportive strategies can be integrated through family-centered care, which recognizes parents as primary caregivers and collaborative partners.http://www.e-cep.org/upload/pdf/cep-2024-00087.pdfpremature infantlanguage developmentneonatal intensive care unitsfamily-centered nursing
spellingShingle Ju Sun Heo
Ee-Kyung Kim
Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative review
Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
premature infant
language development
neonatal intensive care units
family-centered nursing
title Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative review
title_full Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative review
title_fullStr Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative review
title_full_unstemmed Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative review
title_short Strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit: a narrative review
title_sort strategies to support language development in neonatal intensive care unit a narrative review
topic premature infant
language development
neonatal intensive care units
family-centered nursing
url http://www.e-cep.org/upload/pdf/cep-2024-00087.pdf
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AT eekyungkim strategiestosupportlanguagedevelopmentinneonatalintensivecareunitanarrativereview