How common it is
Stuttering affects 5 to 8 per cent of preschool children, and persists in about one per cent of adults. Onset is usually between 30 and 48 months, exactly when sentences grow longer fast.
Natural recovery
Reviews of long-term studies show that 75 to 80 per cent of children recover without a lasting problem, most often within the first 15 to 24 months after onset. But the chance of natural recovery falls the longer it goes on: for children still stuttering after the age of five, estimates drop to 50 to 60 per cent.
That is the reason why “they will grow out of it” is not a plan. Many do grow out of it, but not all, and there is no way to know in advance which.
Does treatment help
The Dutch randomised trial RESTART compared direct treatment (the Lidcombe Program) with indirect treatment in 199 children aged 3 to 6. After 18 months, 76.5 per cent of children in the direct group and 71.4 per cent in the indirect group were no longer stuttering — a difference that was not statistically significant. Direct treatment produced a faster decline in the first three months.
In other words: both approaches do better than expected natural recovery, and the choice depends on the child and the family.
Sources
- Yairi, E. & Ambrose, N. (1999, 2005, 2013) — epidemiological studies of onset and recovery.
- de Sonneville-Koedoot, C. et al. (2015). Direct versus indirect treatment for preschool children who stutter: the RESTART randomized trial. PLOS ONE.
- Stuttering Foundation — stutteringhelp.org
This article is an informational summary of published research and does not replace an individual assessment.