NSP-SCD: A corpus construction protocol for child-directed print in understudied languages.

Child-directed print corpora enable systematic psycholinguistic investigations, but this research infrastructure is not available in many understudied languages. Moreover, researchers of understudied languages are dependent on manual tagging because precise automatized parsers are not yet available. One plausible way forward is to limit the intensive work to a small-sized corpus. However, with little systematic enquiry about approaches to corpus construction, it is unclear how robust a small corpus can be made. The current study examines the potential of a non-sequential sampling protocol for small corpus development (NSP-SCD) through a cross-corpora and within-corpus analysis. A corpus comprising 17,584 words was developed by applying the protocol to a larger corpus of 150,595 words from children's books for 3-to-10-year-olds. While the larger corpus will by definition have more instances of unique words and unique orthographic units, still, the selectively sampled small corpus approximated the larger corpus for lexical and orthographic diversity and was equivalent for orthographic representation and word length. Psycholinguistic complexity increased by book level and varied by parts of speech. Finally, in a robustness check of lexical diversity, the non-sequentially sampled small corpus was more efficient compared to a same-sized corpus constructed by simply using all sentences from a few books (402 books vs. seven books). If a small corpus must be used then non-sequential sampling from books stratified by book level makes the corpus statistics better approximate what is found in larger corpora. Overall, the protocol shows promise as a tool to advance the science of child language acquisition in understudied languages.

Comparison of verbal fluency performance in Kannada-speaking adults with and without euthymic bipolar disorder type 1.

Individuals with euthymic bipolar disorder (BD) type I exhibit deficits in executive functions. Although less explored in the BD population, the tasks of verbal fluency (VF) have shown great potential in understanding semantic organization. This study provides an extensive exploration across the letter and semantic VF tasks in 27 demographically matched euthymic BD-I and healthy controls (HC). The groups were compared on measures of the total number of correct words (TNCW), temporal pattern analysis, number of clusters (NC), mean cluster size (MCS), number of switches (NS), and error pattern. An overall reduction in letter fluency scores (the TNCW, number of switches, and NC) as compared to semantic fluency scores was noted for both groups, with a significantly greater decrease in the BD-1 group. The MCS and temporal pattern were relatively similar across the two groups. The influence of education with no gender difference was observed between groups with error types prevalent in both groups. The study findings call attention toward assessing the VF performance in persons with BD in terms of error production and the strategies employed (clustering-switching).

Clinical utility of shared book reading on YouTube: An analysis of metadata, evidence-based content, understandability, and actionability.

PURPOSE: Digital content may increase parental access to training as well as the diversity of the training programs. YouTube videos may provide a platform from which professionals may adopt content for such programs. This study provides data regarding the clinical utility of YouTube videos about shared book reading (SBR) found on the United States (USA) and India channels. METHOD: A cross-sectional analysis of videos about SBR was conducted to examine metadata, evidence-based content, understandability, and actionability. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse metadata and content. Health literacy concepts of understandability and actionability were measured, and descriptive statistics are reported. RESULT: Of 800 videos identified, 10 included information related to storybook selection, dialogic reading, extra-textual strategies, and print-referencing strategies. These met adequate levels of understandability and actionability. CONCLUSION: Results provide some direction and recommendations for parent-training programs in the USA and India. The study highlights the use of YouTube videos and suggests its utility as a supplement source within parent-training programs.

Rapid naming ability in adults with stuttering.

The investigation of phonological encoding abilities in persons with stuttering has gained importance recently. There is limited information available on the rapid automatized naming ability in adults with stuttering. In the present study, rapid naming ability was assessed in 32 persons with stuttering and 32 persons without stuttering in the age range of 18-30 years on Rapid Automatized Naming and Rapid Alternating Stimulus test. The study findings indicated that the persons with stuttering took a longer time to complete the tasks as compared to persons without stuttering, suggestive of a possible breakdown in phonological encoding ability. Among the subtasks, the longer completion time was observed for the rapid alternating stimulus 3-set task and the color subtasks. The findings of the study clearly propose the need to encompass rapid naming skills, as a part of the assessment and management protocol for individuals with stuttering.

Parental Perspectives on Quality of Life in Adolescents with Cerebral Palsy.

BACKGROUND: Quality of life (QoL) is an important outcome variable while evaluating intervention effectiveness during adolescence. Limited studies have addressed the issues that affect the QoL in adolescents with cerebral palsy. The present study explores the parent-reported QoL in adolescents with cerebral palsy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using a cross-sectional study design, parental perspectives on QoL were investigated among 35 parents of adolescents with cerebral palsy, aged between 13 and 18 years. Performance on seven domains of QoL across age and gender were explored. RESULTS: While the maximum QoL was seen in the domain of social well-being, the least QoL was noted for feelings about functioning. Across age, the early adolescence group (13-15 years) had a poorer quality of life in comparison to the late adolescence group (16-18 years). With respect to the gender, though females had a lower QoL scores, a statistically significant difference was observed only for the domain of general well-being and participation. CONCLUSIONS: From a parental perspective, the major issues of concern in adolescents with cerebral palsy were feelings about functioning, general well-being and participation, and access to services. This information will be useful when establishing management options or assessment protocols to improve their overall QoL.

Neurogenic speech sequelae following suicide attempt by hanging: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Attempting suicide by hanging has become one of the most preferred means among adolescents. Individuals who survive a suicide attempt by hanging have a range of deficits, including neuropsychological, neuropsychiatric, pulmonary and even speech and language deficits. Literature regarding speech and language deficits in cases of near hanging is especially limited. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to demonstrate the sequelae of neurogenic speech deficits following a suicide attempt by hanging, the treatment strategies, and prognostic issues in one such case. METHODS: We report of Patient X who attempted suicide by hanging. The patient was admitted and a detailed speech and language evaluation was completed. RESULTS: Patient X was diagnosed with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy with organic amnesic syndrome. Consequent to the neurogenic insult, the patient demonstrated speech deficits that were characterized by moderate flaccid dysarthria and neurogenic stuttering. Patient X underwent a week of treatment, subsequent to which there was an improvement in certain speech subsystems. However, the neurogenic stuttering symptoms did not resolve completely even post therapy. CONCLUSION: Individuals who survive a suicide attempt by hanging have a range of deficits, including speech deficits that need to be addressed by a speech language pathologist. This case report is an eye opener for speech language pathologists regarding their role in such cases.

Word Retrieval Ability on Phonemic Fluency in Typically Developing Children.

Verbal fluency tasks are simple behavioral measures useful in assessing word retrieval abilities. Among the verbal fluency tasks, the utility of the Phonemic Fluency Task in children has received less attention. As the task is dependent on phonemic characteristics of each language, there is a great need for understanding its developmental trend. The present study, therefore, aims to delineate the performance on phonemic fluency in typically developing Malayalam-speaking children. Verbal fluency performance on 2 tasks of phonemic fluency was tested using a cross-sectional study design among 1,015 school-going Malayalam-speaking typically developing children aged 5 to 15 years old. Performance with respect to word productivity and clustering-switching measures was analyzed. The effect of age, gender, and tasks on the outcome measures were investigated in the present study. Study findings revealed a positive influence of age with no statistically significant gender effects. Children employed both task-discrepant and task-consistent organizational strategies during tasks of phonemic fluency, dependent purely on the Malayalam language. Future research focusing on developmental trends across different languages is vital for enhancing the task's clinical sensitivity and specificity among childhood disorders.

Word retrieval ability on semantic fluency task in typically developing Malayalam-speaking children.

Word-retrieval abilities in children can be assessed using word generation or verbal fluency task. The ability to retrieve is related to the individual's ability to retrieve associated words from the mental lexicon in an organized manner. The present study focuses on the developmental aspects of semantic fluency in 1,015 Malayalam-speaking children in the age range of 5 years to 15 years across both genders. The study revealed a developmental trend in the mean total number of correct word scores, number of clusters generated, and switching scores; however, mean cluster size did not show any statistically significant variation. Further, the scores did not vary across genders. Overall, the study indicated a linear developmental trend during verbal fluency with the increase in complexity of strategy use.

Normative for motor speech profile in Kannada-speaking adults.

OBJECTIVE: The primary purpose of this study was to establish normative for 18 parameters of Motor Speech Profile (MSP; Computerized Speech Lab; KayPENTAX, Lincoln Park, NJ) in Indian population, specifically for Kannada-speaking adults across age and gender. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHOD: Native Kannada speakers (n = 300) were divided into three age groups (20-40, 41-50, and 51-60 years) with 50 males and 50 females in each group. The obtained data are reported across age and gender for the parameters of diadochokinetic rate, second formant transition, and voice and tremor characteristics of MSP software. RESULTS: Across gender, a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05) was seen for seven parameters; whereas across age, a statistically significant variation was seen for nine parameters in the age group of 51-60 years than other groups (20-40 and 41-50 years). CONCLUSION: Establishment of the normative is essential for the effective use of acoustic analysis as an objective tool. The findings of the present study serve as a norm-based reference for MSP software in Indian population, aged between 20 and 60 years.

Acoustic analysis of voice in normal and high pitch phonation: a comparative study.

OBJECTIVES: Comparison of acoustic parameters of voice between normal and high pitch phonation in normal adults, and comparison between genders. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: A total of 48 normal laryngeal speakers were considered for this study. The acoustic parameters were analyzed using the Multi-Dimensional Voice Program. Descriptive statistics were used for analysis of the acoustic parameters across tasks and genders. Paired-samples t tests were used to compare measures between tasks. Independent-samples t tests were used to compare parameters between genders. RESULTS: Significant differences were found across tasks in the range of fundamental frequency and average fundamental frequency. Females showed a significant difference in the frequency perturbation measures ­ percent jitter and relative average perturbation, while males demonstrated a significant difference in the noise-to-harmonic ratio. While comparing mean differences between genders, significant differences were observed in fundamental frequency, range of the fundamental frequency, and smoothed pitch perturbation quotient during both phonation tasks. CONCLUSION: Comparison of acoustic parameters between normal and high pitch phonation would facilitate understanding the effect of high pitch phonation on voice parameters. Subsequently, this would help clinicians to focus on important acoustic parameters while assessing professional voice users who are at risk of developing voice problems.

Speech and swallowing outcomes in buccal mucosa carcinoma.

Buccal carcinoma is one of the most common malignant neoplasms among all oral cancers in India. Understanding the role of speech language pathologists (SLPs) in the domains of evaluation and management strategies of this condition is limited, especially in the Indian context. This is a case report of a young adult with recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the buccal mucosa with no deleterious habits usually associated with buccal mucosa carcinoma. Following composite resection, pectoralis major myocutaneous flap reconstruction, he developed severe oral dysphagia and demonstrated unintelligible speech. This case report focuses on the issues of swallowing and speech deficits in buccal mucosa carcinoma that need to be addressed by SLPs, and the outcomes of speech and swallowing rehabilitation and prognostic issues.