Comorbidity of mental disorders among the stuttering children referred to speech therapy department of Akhavan hospital in Kashan

Stuttering is a developmental disorder which may adversely affect the individual on many emotional levels and cause many impairments (e.g. lack of self- confidence, depression, poor communication and finally the avoidance of social situation. This study was carried out to evaluate the comorbidity of mental dis‌orders among the stuttering children in Kashan during 2007-8. In this cross-sectional study, 50 children (age range, 3-12 years) referred to speech therapy department of Akhavan hospital were selected using the census sampling. The diagnosis of mental disorders was made by psychiatrists through a clinical interview based on the DSM-IV-TR checklist. In addition, the IQ of cases was measured using the Wechsler test. Data were analyzed using the Chi-square test. Thirty-three children (70%) had the comorbid mental disorders. The most common comorbid disorders were attention deficit hyperactivity and anxiety disorders (51.4% and 25.7%, respectively). A significant difference was found between the comorbid mental disorder and the age and also the educational level of children (P=0.005 and P=0.003, respectively). According to the results, the majority of children had comorbid mental disorders. Considering the high rates of comorbidity among the children and also their outcomes, more careful attention should be paid to offer the effective therapeutic plans.