Abstract

Stuttering is a male-biased speech motor control disorder that lead to disruption in the rhythm of speech. The effect of sex on development of stuttering is well known; males are more susceptible to and less recovered from stuttering than female. Sex hormones have been studied as a main accused factor for this gender dependency of the disorder. The aim of this systematic review is to navigate the extent of previous research about the relationship of developmental stuttering and sex hormones. Toward these ends, a comprehensive, electronic review of past concepts regarding the relationship of stuttering with sex hormones and digit ratio as an indirect index for fetal testosterone exposure, in Scopus, Science Direct, PubMed, Medline, Embase, and Cochrane database was carried out to identify potential studies for the review. Inclusion criteria were original quantitative research, written in English, used human subjects and published from 2000 through 2020. Findings were mixed, although potential patterns were identified. There were methodological limitations such as small participant numbers, in the targeted population in this review research. The findings from this current study add to the growing body of evidence demonstrating that sex hormone have a significant association with stuttering.

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