The Child Who Stutters: To the Pediatrician

Most children go through periods of disfluency as they learn to speak. Some will experience mild stuttering, and for others the difficulty will become severe. Early intervention by the pediatrician can help parents understand and thus minimize the problem.

Download PDF: The Child Who Stutters: To the Pediatrician

Authored by:

Barry Guitar, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Vermont

Edward G. Conture, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus, Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University

Editorial Assistance:

Stephen Contompasis, M.D.

Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Vermont Medical School, University of Vermont

Jane Fraser

President, The Stuttering Foundation

Michael B. Grizzard, M.D.

Medical Director, The World Bank, Washington, D.C.

Ellen Kelly, Ph.D.

Associate Professor, Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine

James McKay, M.D.

Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Vermont

Peter Ramig, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus, Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, University of Colorado–Boulder

Patricia M. Zebrowski, Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus, Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology, University of Iowa

the child who stutters: to the pediatrician, 6th edition

Publication No. 0023

First Edition—1991

Second Edition—2001

Third Edition—2004

Fourth Edition—2006

Revised Fourth Edition—2007

Fifth Edition—2013
Revised Fifth Edition—2016
Sixth Edition—2021

Published by

Stuttering Foundation of America

P. O. Box 11749

Memphis, Tennessee 38111-0749

ISBN 978-0-933388-56-7

The Stuttering Foundation of America is a nonprofit charitable organization dedicated to the prevention and improved treatment of stuttering.

CELEBRITY FOCUS

Jack Paar

While Jack Paar is among the most prominent of the entertainers on the Stuttering Foundation’s list of Famous People Who Stutter, he deserves special recognition as he was among the first to openly address his stuttering in public. As host of The Tonight Show from 1957-1962, he spoke of his difficulties as a stuttering child and teenager, giving hope to young people.

John Melendez

He is a talented musician, actor, and comedian. Listen to a podcast.

Lewis Carroll

The recent Disney version of Lewis Carroll’s classic, Alice in Wonderland, garnered a great deal of media hype. Even though the mainstream media has not made mention that Carroll was a person who stuttered, his family history gives credence to the discovery of the genetic link to stuttering. Carroll was born to parents who were first cousins; almost all of their eleven children, three girls and seven boys, struggled with stuttering past childhood.

Byron Pitts

Byron Pitts has brought much attention to stuttering with his memoir, Step Out on Nothing: How Faith and Family Helped Me Conquer Life’s Challenges, released in September, 2009. The book not only details his speech difficulties, but also his illiteracy until age 12 and his unstable family life. Pitts overcame the odds to become the chief national correspondent with ABC News.

Dave Taylor

Dave Taylor has been on the Stuttering Foundation's list of Famous People Who Stutter for many years, but probably few people know all of the unique accomplishments of this former hockey great who was born on December 4, 1955, in Levack, Ontario.