Metals have been recognized as powerful toxins for many years. Toxic exposure to these metals arises in diverse circumstances including environmental, therapeutic and industrial exposure. There is a spectrum of exposure patterns from chronic low levels such as exposure of children to lead paint in older houses, to acute high-dose exposure either intentionally or by accident. Exposure to metals causes impairment of language and learning. Four metals have the greatest affection on language: lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As) and aluminum (Al). Each metal has a specific influence on language; as affection on cognitive function, mentality, hearing or behavior. The present study has been conducted on 50 children with language disorder. The children have been assessed clinically, arabic language test and IQ estimation. Comparing to 20 normal kids taken as control, the diseased children showed significant retardation in the development of language, IQ levels and development of other body activities such as sitting and walking. The level of some heavy metals (copper Cu; lead, Pb; cadmium, Cd; manganese Mn; Zinc, Zn), estimated by atomic absorption in the blood of intoxicated children showed higher levels of lead than in normal children. A relationship between the developmental language retardation and high levels of metals in the blood have been recorded. It can be concluded that the metal poisoning in childhood might affect the language development in addition to the development of body activities. The present study recommendation is to screen the metal levels specially lead in the blood of children in early childhood and try to manage those cases with significantly high levels and follow up them by clinical and laboratory examination to avoid delayed language development.
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