Behavioral Treatment for Speech and Language in Primary Progressive Aphasia and Primary Progressive Apraxia of Speech: A Systematic Review.

Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) and primary progressive apraxia of speech (PPAOS) are neurodegenerative syndromes characterized by progressive decline in language or speech. There is a growing number of studies investigating speech-language interventions for PPA/PPAOS. An updated systematic evaluation of the treatment evidence is warranted to inform best clinical practice and guide future treatment research. We systematically reviewed the evidence for behavioral treatment for speech and language in this population. Reviewed articles were published in peer-reviewed journals through 31 May 2021. We evaluated level of evidence, reporting quality, and risk of bias using a modified version of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) Levels of Evidence, an appraisal point system, additional reporting quality and internal/external validity items, and, as appropriate, the Single Case Experimental Design Scale or the Physiotherapy Evidence Database - PsycBITE Rating Scale for Randomized and Non-Randomized Controlled Trials. Results were synthesized using quantitative summaries and narrative review. A total of 103 studies reported treatment outcomes for 626 individuals with PPA; no studies used the diagnostic label PPAOS. Most studies evaluated interventions for word retrieval. The highest-quality evidence was provided by 45 experimental and quasi-experimental studies (16 controlled group studies, 29 single-subject designs). All (k = 45/45) reported improvement on a primary outcome measure; most reported generalization (k = 34/43), maintenance (k = 34/39), or social validity (k = 17/19) of treatment for at least one participant. The available evidence supports speech-language intervention for persons with PPA; however, treatment for PPAOS awaits systematic investigation. Implications and limitations of the evidence and the review are discussed.

Managing communication changes in persons with multiple sclerosis: Findings from qualitative focus groups.

BACKGROUND: There is growing recognition that communication can be affected in multiple sclerosis (MS) and can negatively impact relationships, employment and psychological well-being. Some persons with MS (PwMS) implement strategies to facilitate their communication; however, some do not. Most PwMS who report communication changes do not engage with speech-language pathology (SLP) services. This raises concerns that a large portion of communication changes associated with MS go under-recognized and unmanaged. Little is known about what PwMS want and need to facilitate effective communication. AIM: To explore what PwMS want and need to better manage their communication changes. METHODS & PROCEDURES: Three focus groups were conducted online using Zoom, with a total of 12 PwMS. Participants were an opportunistic sample of PwMS within Australia recruited via advertisements distributed to various MS organizations and clinics. Data were transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic content analysis to provide a qualitative analysis of the data. OUTCOMES & RESULTS: Two main themes emerged: (1) accessible knowledge and a holistic approach; and (2) partnerships. Specifically, the identified wants and needs of participants included: (1) assessment; (2) information; (3) raising awareness; (4) support groups; (5) a whole-person approach to intervention; (6) geographically and economically accessible and navigable services; (7) effective patient-physician interactions; and (8) a multidisciplinary team-based approach (e.g., SLP, psychology, neuropsychology, occupational therapy). CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS: This study identified a wide range of unmet wants and needs of PwMS related to communication changes. Participants wanted improved collaborative partnerships with healthcare professionals to better manage their communication changes. For example, healthcare professionals could ask PwMS about potential communication changes, provide education and make appropriate referrals. Education and information provision could focus on communication changes in MS, factors that trigger or exacerbate communication changes, impacts, self-management strategies, and available supports and services. Specific implications for clinical practice and future research are suggested in this paper, including ideas for patient education materials and content, suggestions for communication-specific screening and information that could be shared in patient-physician interactions, the development of guidelines to systematically screen, assess, manage and monitor communication changes in MS, and the design of evidence-based communication interventions for this clinical population. The results from this study can be used to guide the design of supports and services to help PwMS better manage communication changes, with the aim to reduce the negative impacts. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: What is already known on this subject PwMS can experience communication changes across a range of domains, including speech, voice, fluency, expressive and receptive language, and cognitive-linguistic functions. These changes can have profound and far-reaching negative impacts on educational and vocational outcomes, social participation, relationships, psychological well-being, and quality of life. Most PwMS who report communication changes do not engage with SLP services. There has been little research exploring what PwMS want and need to help manage their communication changes. What this paper adds to the existing knowledge This research is the first study of its kind that sets out specifically to explore what PwMS want and need to better manage their communication changes. This study increases our understanding of, and provides valuable insights into, the specific types of supports and services PwMS desire to access, and the partnerships and kinds of interactions PwMS dream of having with healthcare professionals to manage these changes. This information can facilitate the development of future interventions to manage communication changes in MS. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? PwMS wanted healthcare professionals to ask about potential communication changes, provide education and make appropriate referrals. When providing education and information on communication changes in MS, healthcare professionals should focus on covering symptoms, triggers, impacts, self-management strategies, and available supports and services. There is a timely need to develop guidelines and interventions to manage communication changes in MS to reduce their negative impacts.

Outcomes of semantic feature analysis treatment for aphasia with and without apraxia of speech.

BACKGROUND: To date, studies have not explored whether a dual diagnosis of aphasia plus apraxia of speech (AOS) versus aphasia alone (APH) affects the response to language-based naming treatments. AIMS: To compare the effects of semantic feature analysis (SFA) treatment for individuals with APH versus aphasia plus AOS, and to test if the presence of AOS impacted the effects of treatment. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: A non-randomized experimental group study was conducted to explore the treatment, generalization and maintenance effects between the AOS and APH groups. Participants included nine individuals with aphasia and 11 with concomitant aphasia and AOS. Dependent measures included lexical accuracy, number of sound-level distortions, and lexical stress and syllable segmentation errors. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Both groups showed significantly improved naming accuracy of trained items for up to 2 months post-treatment. Improvement on naming accuracy of untrained items post-treatment, both semantically related and unrelated to trained items, was lower in magnitude. That this may have been due to effects of repeated probing (which included target repetition) or regression to the mean cannot be excluded. There was a tendency for the AOS group to respond slightly better to treatment than the APH group overall, which was not correlated with aphasia severity. Also, measures of phonetic accuracy and fluency improved for both groups, with no main effect of group. Treatment effects did not generalize to formal measures of (untrained) picture naming or expression of correct information units in discourse in a story retelling task. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Findings indicate that individuals with aphasia plus AOS can gain equivalent benefits in word retrieval and production from the language-based SFA treatment as individuals with aphasia alone. This may be, in part, due to the tendency for SFA to incorporate principles of practice that are known to support motor learning in AOS, such as high intensity, random stimulus presentation and variable practice. Findings provide further support for high-intensity practice and use of self-generated features to facilitate maintenance of effects. What this paper adds What is already known on the subject SFA treatment is the most common intervention for word-finding difficulties for individuals with aphasia. AOS is a common concomitant disorder to aphasia. However, it is not clear whether the effects of language-based SFA treatment are mitigated by the presence of AOS, which tends to respond well to treatments focused on articulatory-kinematic aspects of speech movement. What this paper adds to the existing knowledge This study compares the effects of SFA in a group of individuals with aphasia alone and a group with similar severity of aphasia but with concomitant AOS, ranging from mild to moderate-severe. Overall, AOS did not have a negative effect on response to the treatment. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? Individuals with aphasia plus AOS can be expected to benefit to a similar degree from SFA as people with aphasia alone. It is likely that the use of practice principles of high intensity, random stimulus presentation and varied practice are important components of the protocol.

The effects of choral singing on communication impairments in acquired brain injury: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Acquired brain injury (ABI), such as Parkinson's disease, dementia or stroke, can result in communication difficulties that lead to an impoverished ability to connect meaningfully with others. Choral singing is a complex task that uses multiple brain regions which are also responsible for language and communication skills. The potential therapeutic effects of group singing on communication-related outcomes across ABI aetiologies have not been systematically reviewed. AIMS: To examine whether participation in group singing over multiple sessions improves speech, voice, language and/or communication skills in individuals with ABI-related communication disorders. METHODS & PROCEDURES: A database search was undertaken according to the PRISMA guidelines. Search terms included: stroke OR Parkinson* OR dementia OR 'acquired brain injury' AND choir OR choral OR singing OR sing OR 'choral sing* ' OR group adj3 singing OR community adj3 singing AND speech OR language OR communication. MAIN CONTRIBUTION: A total of 11 studies were included. Nine were quantitative, including one randomized and one non-randomized control trial, and two were mixed method. Nine studies were scored as level IV (uncontrolled) on the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Classification of Evidence Matrix and two as level III (e.g., lack of blinded assessors). Eight examined speech and voice skills in Parkinson's disease, two functional communication skills in post-stroke aphasia and one communication between individuals with dementia and a significant other. One level III control trials provided evidence for a therapeutic effect of group singing on communication in individuals with Parkinson's disease. CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS: Currently, there is only one study providing support for using group singing to improve speech and voice skills in people with Parkinson's disease, and no studies of adequate quality indicating positive effects on language and functional communication abilities in ABI. Further research using more rigorous experimental designs is required to determine whether group singing can influence communication skills in ABI. What this paper adds What is already known on the subject Music activates widespread, bilateral cortical and subcortical brain regions. Group singing is increasingly understood to have positive benefits on quality of life and health-related well-being in both healthy and clinical populations. Given the crossover in neural networks between singing, speech and language, singing activities are also thought to have positive effect of communication impairments secondary to ABI. However, to date, the research evidence supporting the application of group singing for communication impairments in ABI has not been summarized. What this paper adds to existing knowledge A total of 11 studies have looked at communication outcomes after group singing in ABI. For most of these, the quality of evidence was low (AAN level IV). It also highlights that there is a bias in the literature towards the studying individuals with Parkinson's disease (i.e., nine of the 11 studies). What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? This review concludes that, currently, there is emerging evidence to support positive effects of a group singing for speech and voice symptoms in individuals with Parkinson's disease, when provided using the Tamplin protocol. However, there is not yet any evidence for communication benefits for individuals with aphasia or dementia.

Still not adult-like: lexical stress contrastivity in word productions of eight- to eleven-year-olds.

Lexical stress is the contrast between strong and weak syllables within words. Ballard et al. (2012) examined the amount of stress contrastivity across adjacent syllables in word productions of typically developing three- to seven-year-olds and adults. Here, eight- to eleven-year-olds are compared with the adults from Ballard et al. using acoustic measurements of relative contrast in duration, peak intensity, and peak fundamental frequency of the vowels within the initial two syllables of each word. While eight- to eleven-year-olds are closer to adult-like stress contrastivity than three- to seven-year-olds, they are not yet adult-like in terms of the intensity contrast for words beginning with a weak syllable.

Telehealth delivery of Rapid Syllable Transitions (ReST) treatment for childhood apraxia of speech.

BACKGROUND: Rapid Syllable Transitions (ReST) treatment uses pseudo-word targets with varying lexical stress to target simultaneously articulation, prosodic accuracy and coarticulatory transitions in childhood apraxia of speech (CAS). The treatment is efficacious for the acquisition of imitated pseudo-words, and generalization of skill to untreated pseudo-words and real words. Despite the growing popularity of telehealth as a method of service delivery, there is no research into the efficacy of telehealth treatments for CAS. Telehealth service delivery is associated with compromised audio and visual signal transmission that may affect the efficacy of treatment. AIMS: To conduct a phase 1 efficacy study of telehealth delivery of ReST treatment for CAS, and to discuss the efficacy with reference to face-to-face ReST treatment. METHODS & PROCEDURES: Using a multiple baseline across participants design, five children aged 5-11 years with CAS received ReST treatment four times a week for 3 weeks via video conferencing with Adobe Connect. The children's ability to imitate new pseudo-words, generalize the skills to untreated pseudo-words and real word items, and maintain the skills following treatment were assessed. Both visual and statistical analyses were utilized. OUTCOMES & RESULTS: All five children significantly improved with their production of the imitated treated pseudo-word items and significantly generalized to similar untreated pseudo-words and real words. Additionally, two of the children showed significant generalization to imitated phrases with the treatment items. Four of the children maintained their treatment gains up to 4 months post-treatment. Telehealth delivery produced similar acquisition of pseudo-words and generalization to untreated behaviours as face-to-face delivery; however, in the 4 months following treatment, the children showed stable rather than improving speech skills. The intra- and inter-judge reliability was similar in telehealth delivery for face-to-face delivery. Caregivers and clinicians were satisfied with the telehealth treatment. CONCLUSIONS & IMPLICATIONS: This phase 1 study provides promising indications of the efficacy of ReST treatment when delivered four times per week via telehealth, and warrants further large-scale investigation.

Acoustic changes in the production of lexical stress during Lombard speech.

The Lombard effect describes the phenomenon of individuals increasing their vocal intensity when speaking in the presence of background noise. Here, we conducted an investigation of the production of lexical stress during Lombard speech. Participants (N = 27) produced the same sentences in three conditions: one quiet condition and two noise conditions at 70 dB (white noise; multi-talker babble). Manual acoustic analyses (syllable duration, vowel intensity, and vowel fundamental frequency) were completed for repeated productions of two trisyllabic words with opposing patterns of lexical stress (weak-strong; strong-weak) in each of the three conditions. In total, 324 productions were analysed (12 utterances per participant). Results revealed that, rather than increasing vocal intensity equally across syllables, participants alter the degree of stress contrastivity when speaking in noise. This was especially evident in the production of strong-weak lexical stress where there was an increase in contrastivity across syllables in terms of intensity and fundamental frequency. This preliminary study paves the way for further research that is needed to establish these findings using a larger set of multisyllabic stimuli.

Speech Intervention for Children With Cleft Palate Using Principles of Motor Learning.

PURPOSE: This is a pilot study to apply an articulatory kinematic speech intervention that uses the principles of motor learning (PML) to improve speech and resonance outcomes for children with cleft palate. It is hypothesized that (a) treatment that applies select PML during practice will improve production of treated phonemes, representing both active and inconsistent passive errors, at word level in children with cleft palate; (b) effects of practice on phonemes with active or inconsistent passive errors will generalize to untreated exemplars of treated phonemes; and (c) learning will be retained for at least 1-month posttreatment. METHOD: A multiple-baseline design across participants combined with a crossover single-case experimental model was used. Participants attended two 8-week blocks of twice-weekly face-to-face speech therapy (40-50 min/treatment) to treat active and inconsistent passive cleft speech errors using articulatory kinematic speech intervention that applied PML. The participants were four children with cleft-type speech errors. The primary dependent variable measured was percentage of words correct across treatment items, generalization items, and control items. Perceptual accuracy of target words was scored. Effect sizes were calculated to quantify the magnitude of treatment effect. RESULTS: For three children with active and inconsistent passive cleft speech errors and one child with active cleft speech errors and developmental phonological speech errors, this approach resulted in improvements to their treated items and generalization to their untreated items. Inconsistent passive cleft speech errors were particularly responsive to the treatment in the three children who presented with these errors. CONCLUSION: This Phase I study has shown that articulatory kinematic speech intervention that applies the PML is effective in improving the speech outcomes for children with cleft palate and that there is validity in pursuing further research into this approach. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.21644831.

Equitable access to speech practice for rural Australian children using the SayBananas! mobile game.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect, usage, and user-experience for SayBananas!, a Mario-style mobile game providing Australian children access to high-dose individualised speech therapy practice. METHOD: Participants were 45 rural Australian children with speech sound disorders (SSD; 4;4-10;5 years) with internet access. This mixed-methods study involved: (a) recruitment, (b) eligibility screening, (c) questionnaire, (d) online pre-assessment, (e) SayBananas! intervention using motor learning principles (4 weeks, 10-15 target words), and (f) online post-assessment and interview. Usage and performance were automatically monitored. RESULT: Most participants were highly engaged with SayBananas! completing a median of 44.71 trials/session (∼45% of the 100 trial/session target, range 7-194). After intervention, participants made significant gains on treated words and on formal assessment of percentage of consonants, vowels, and phonemes correct. There was no reliable change for parent-rated intelligibility or children's feelings about talking. The number of practice sessions was significantly correlated with percent change on treated words. On average, children rated the app as "happy/good/fun" providing detailed drawings of playing SayBananas!. Families provided high ratings of engagement, functionality, aesthetics, and quality. CONCLUSION: SayBananas! is a viable and engaging solution for rural Australian children with SSD to gain access to equitable, cost-effective speech practice. The amount of app use was associated with amount of speech production improvement over a 4-week period.

Phase I trial of the MuSic to CONnect (MuSiCON) protocol: feasibility and effect of choir participation for individuals with cognitive impairment.

BACKGROUND: Individuals living in residential aged care facilities with cognitive decline are at risk of social isolation and decreased wellbeing. These risks may be exacerbated by decline in communication skills. There is growing awareness that group singing may improve sense of wellbeing for individuals with dementia. However, to date few studies have examined broader rehabilitative effects on skills such as communication of individuals with dementia. AIMS: To determine the feasibility and acceptability of the MuSic to Connect (MuSiCON) choir and language/communication assessment protocol in people with cognitive impairment living in non-high-care wards of a residential facility. METHODS: Six individuals with mild-moderate cognitive impairment participated (age range 55-91 years, five female, one male). A mixed method approach was used. Quantitative outcomes included attendance rates, quality of life and communication measures. The qualitative measure was a brief survey of experience completed by participants and carers post-intervention. RESULTS: Overall, MuSiCON was perceived as positive and beneficial, with high attendance, perception of improved daily functioning and high therapeutic benefit without harmful effects. While there was no reliable change in communication skills over the course of the six-week intervention, most participants successfully engaged in the conversational task, suggesting it is a suitable and ecologically valid method for data collection. CONCLUSIONS: The MuSiCON protocol demonstrated feasibility and was well received by participants and staff at the residential facility. A co-design approach is recommended to improve upon feasibility, acceptability and validity of the assessment protocol prior to Phase II testing.

Subtypes of progressive aphasia: application of the International Consensus Criteria and validation using ß-amyloid imaging.

Primary progressive aphasia comprises a heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative conditions with diverse clinical profiles and underlying pathological substrates. A major development has been the publication of the recent International Consensus Criteria for the three major variants namely: semantic, non-fluent/agrammatic and logopenic. The logopenic variant is assumed to represent an atypical presentation of Alzheimer pathology although evidence for this is, at present, limited. The semantic and non-fluent/agrammatic variants are largely associated with frontotemporal lobar degeneration with TDP-43 and tau pathology, respectively. The applicability of the International Consensus Criteria to an unselected clinical sample is unknown and no agreed clinical evaluation scale on which to derive the diagnosis exists. We assessed 47 consecutive cases of primary progressive aphasic seen over a 3-year period in a specialist centre, using a newly developed progressive aphasia language scale. A subgroup of 30 cases underwent (11)C-labelled Pittsburgh Compound B positron emission tomography imaging, a putative biomarker of Alzheimer's disease that detects ß-amyloid accumulation, and they were compared with an age-matched group (n = 10) with typical, predominately amnestic Alzheimer's disease. The application of an algorithm based on four key speech and language variables (motor speech disorders, agrammatism, single-word comprehension and sentence repetition) classified 45 of 47 (96%) of patients and showed high concordance with the gold standard expert clinical diagnosis based on the International Consensus Criteria. The level of neocortical ß-amyloid burden varied considerably across aphasic variants. Of 13 logopenic patients, 12 (92%) had positive ß-amyloid uptake. In contrast, one of nine (11%) semantic variant and two of eight (25%) non-fluent/agrammatic cases were positive. The distribution of ß-amyloid across cortical regions of interest was identical in cases with the logopenic variant to that of patients with typical Alzheimer's disease although the total load was lower in the aphasic cases. Impairments of sentence repetition and sentence comprehension were positively correlated with neocortical burden of ß-amyloid, whereas impaired single-word comprehension showed a negative correlation. The International Consensus Criteria can be applied to the majority of cases with primary progressive aphasic using a simple speech and language assessment scale based upon four key variables. ß-amyloid imaging confirms the higher rate of Alzheimer pathology in the logopenic variant and, in turn, the low rates in the other two variants. The study offers insight into the biological basis of clinical manifestations of Alzheimer's disease, which appear topographically independent of ß-amyloid load.

A comparison of two treatments for childhood apraxia of speech: methods and treatment protocol for a parallel group randomised control trial.

BACKGROUND: Childhood Apraxia of Speech is an impairment of speech motor planning that manifests as difficulty producing the sounds (articulation) and melody (prosody) of speech. These difficulties may persist through life and are detrimental to academic, social, and vocational development. A number of published single subject and case series studies of speech treatments are available. There are currently no randomised control trials or other well designed group trials available to guide clinical practice. METHODS/DESIGN: A parallel group, fixed size randomised control trial will be conducted in Sydney, Australia to determine the efficacy of two treatments for Childhood Apraxia of Speech: 1) Rapid Syllable Transition Treatment and the 2) Nuffield Dyspraxia Programme - Third edition. Eligible children will be English speaking, aged 4-12 years with a diagnosis of suspected CAS, normal or adjusted hearing and vision, and no comprehension difficulties or other developmental diagnoses. At least 20 children will be randomised to receive one of the two treatments in parallel. Treatments will be delivered by trained and supervised speech pathology clinicians using operationalised manuals. Treatment will be administered in 1-hour sessions, 4 times per week for 3 weeks. The primary outcomes are speech sound and prosodic accuracy on a customised 292 item probe and the Diagnostic Evaluation of Articulation and Phonology inconsistency subtest administered prior to treatment and 1 week, 1 month and 4 months post-treatment. All post assessments will be completed by blinded assessors. Our hypotheses are: 1) treatment effects at 1 week post will be similar for both treatments, 2) maintenance of treatment effects at 1 and 4 months post will be greater for Rapid Syllable Transition Treatment than Nuffield Dyspraxia Programme treatment, and 3) generalisation of treatment effects to untrained related speech behaviours will be greater for Rapid Syllable Transition Treatment than Nuffield Dyspraxia Programme treatment. This protocol was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee, University of Sydney (#12924). DISCUSSION: This will be the first randomised control trial to test treatment for CAS. It will be valuable for clinical decision-making and providing evidence-based services for children with CAS. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry: ACTRN12612000744853.

A Developmental Approach to Assessing and Treating Agrammatic Aphasia.

PURPOSE: There is mounting evidence that the agrammatism that defines Broca's aphasia can be explained in processing terms. However, the extant approach simply describes agrammatism as disparate deficits in a static, mature system. This tutorial aims to motivate and outline a developmental alternative. This alternative is processability theory (PT), a root-to-apex theory of language development, with its origins in the field of second language acquisition, which can connect the findings of aphasia research. METHOD: This tutorial critically reviews research on agrammatism as a language deficit, a representational deficit, and a processing phenomenon. Given evidence from research applying PT to language disorders, this tutorial outlines PT's multidimensional architecture of language processing. Using an emergence (onset) criterion, PT predicts fixed developmental stages in word order (syntax) and inflection (morphology) and individual differences in the timing of syntax and morphology. To link PT to agrammatism, this theory's applications to diagnosis and teaching are overviewed, and a case study of five individuals with moderate agrammatism is presented. RESULTS: Analysis showed that all individuals were positioned in the early PT stages and differed in their timing of syntax and morphology consistent with theoretical predictions. CONCLUSIONS: Evidence from the case study suggests that, although agrammatism results from neural damage and associated language loss, the processing procedures necessary for relearning remain and can be exploited for recovery. A program of diagnosis and intervention is proposed, and future research directions are discussed. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.19416488.

Identifying segmental and prosodic errors associated with the increasing word length effect in acquired apraxia of speech.

Purpose: Individuals with stroke-related apraxia of speech (AOS) plus aphasia tend to produce more speech errors with increasing word length. The Words of Increasing Length task (WIL) uses a 3-point scale to score word accuracy but penalises for error types that can arise either from language or motor impairment, reducing the test's sensitivity and specificity. The purpose here was to identify error types explaining variance in the WIL score, and those associated with AOS and word length.Method: Speech errors were perceptually identified on the WIL task for 51 Australian English-speaking adults with stroke-related aphasia, 25 with concomitant AOS. Multiple regression and linear mixed effects modelling were applied.Result: Variance in WIL scores was best explained with four error types: consonant additions, incorrect number of syllables, false starts and consonant substitutions/distortions. False starts were significantly associated with AOS diagnosis. Incorrect number of syllables, consonant omissions, false starts, and lexical stress errors increased in frequency for longer words and, while the interaction with diagnosis did not reach significance, the effect appeared driven by the AOS group.Conclusion: Findings provide further support for using polysyllabic word production to assess apraxic speech. The WIL task has limitations that may bias patients' performance and clinicians' perceptual evaluation. Data provide valuable information for designing a more sensitive diagnostic protocol for AOS.

Dynamic Assessment for Children With Communication Disorders: A Systematic Scoping Review and Framework.

PURPOSE: The aim of this systematic scoping review was to identify the elements that exist in dynamic assessments of communication in children, synthesize and arrange them into a framework, and investigate how these elements have been used in published literature. METHOD: Seven databases were searched using clusters of keywords themed around "dynamic assessment," "communication," and "children." Papers were reviewed against eligibility criteria by two independent reviewers at both title/abstract and full-text screening stages. Data charting included information about study design and the methodological characteristics of identified dynamic assessments. RESULTS: Sixty-five papers met inclusion criteria. Dynamic assessments were used in a range of areas of communication and used diverse methodologies. A total of 23 elements were identified and formulated into a Dynamic Assessment Framework, arranged into eight categories within two broad domains. A majority of assessments utilized prompting or cueing as instruction (54%), provided a predetermined amount of instruction (55%), measured child performance (63%), and were prescripted (60%). CONCLUSIONS: Dynamic assessments are complex. Utilizing a dynamic assessment in clinical practice or research requires a deep understanding of the purpose, clinical population, implementation, and data collection and measurement requirements. From our review of research involving dynamic assessments of communication in children, there is a need for greater transparency of reporting of the elements comprising dynamic assessments. The Dynamic Assessment Framework presented in this review article offers researchers and clinicians a way to have transparent discussions and extend our collective insights into the value of dynamic assessment of children's communication skills. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.20151830.

Perspectives from the patient: A content analysis of communication changes, impact, and strategies to facilitate communication in multiple sclerosis.

Purpose: Communication changes in multiple sclerosis (MS) are under-explored and under-recognised. Persons with MS (PwMS) are experts in their condition and play a valuable role in informing clinicians and researchers of their condition. This study aimed to investigate the perspectives of PwMS on: (1) MS-related communication changes, (2) the impact of these communication changes across key aspects of a person's life, including work/studies, relationships, and general quality of life, and (3) strategies used to facilitate communication in daily interactions.Method: Two-hundred and sixty PwMS were recruited internationally and completed an online questionnaire. Content analysis was used to analyse open-ended questionnaire responses.Result: One-hundred and ninety-seven (75.8%) participants reported communication changes, including language, cognitive, speech, voice, and fluency changes. Participants described a variety of personal and environmental factors that influence communication negatively, such as fatigue, stress, and heat. Communication changes were reported to impact on psychological wellbeing, interpersonal relationships, participation and identity in the workforce and career pathways, and tertiary studies. Around 40% of participants reported using a range of overt and covert strategies to manage communication changes. Only 11.2% (n = 22/197) of participants who reported communication changes accessed speech-language pathology (SLP) services.Conclusion: PwMS can experience a wide spectrum of communication changes. These communication changes can have a profound and far-reaching impact on psychological wellbeing and societal participation. Engagement with SLP services is limited compared to the reported prevalence of communication changes. There is a need to raise awareness of the role of SLP in service provision for PwMS to manage communication changes. This paper discusses and provides suggestions for SLP services for PwMS with communication changes. There is a timely need to develop evidence-based interventions to support PwMS manage communication changes and reduce their impact.

Do age and language impairment affect speed of recognition for words with high and low closeness centrality within the phonological network?

Purpose: Speed and accuracy of lexical access change with healthy ageing and neurodegeneration. While a word's immediate phonological neighbourhood density (i.e. words differing by a single phoneme) influences access, connectivity to all words in the phonological network (i.e. closeness centrality) may influence processing. This study aimed to investigate the effect of closeness centrality on speed and accuracy of lexical processing pre- and post- a single word-training session in healthy younger and older adults, and adults with logopenic primary progressive aphasia (lvPPA), which affects phonological processing.Method: Participants included 29 young and 17 older healthy controls, and 10 adults with lvPPA. Participants received one session of word-training on words with high or low closeness centrality, using a picture-word verification task. Changes in lexical decision reaction times (RT) and accuracy were measured.Result: Baseline RT was unaffected by age and accuracy was at ceiling for controls. Post-training, only young adults' RT were significantly faster. Adults with lvPPA were slower and less accurate than controls at baseline, with no training effect. Closeness centrality did not influence performance.Conclusion: Absence of training effect for older adults suggests higher threshold to induce priming, possibly associated with insufficient dosage or fatigue. Implications for word-finding interventions with older adults are discussed.

An evaluation of Short-term Treatment Outcomes of Cricothyroid Visor Maneuver: A Proof-of-Concept Pilot Study.

INTRODUCTION: Muscle tension dysphonia (MTD) is used as a clinical and diagnostic descriptive label for a diverse range of vocal fold behaviors caused by increased tension of the (para) laryngeal musculature. These increased tension can occur in the cricothyroid muscle and in the ''visor'' mechanism, contributing to voice problems. The main goal of this study is to determine whether a new method, the cricothyroid visor maneuver (CVM), is an effective method for improving quality and other aspects of the MTD patients' voices. METHOD(S): Eighty-eight adult female patients participated in this quasiexperimental study. One group consisted of 30 MTD patients (mean age 28.7 ± 4.95 years) for whom manual circumlaryngeal therapy (MCT) was provided. The other group consisted of 30 MTD patients (mean age 28.9 ± 5.1 years) who received CVM. Also, 28 adult females with MTD (mean age 28.60 ± 4.56 years), who were on the clinic's waiting list, served as a control group and did not receive any treatment. Treatment was provided in a single 30-minute session. Pre- and post-treatment audio recordings of sustained vowels, selected sentences, and connected speech samples were submitted to auditory-perceptual and acoustical analysis to assess the short-term effects of the two treatment programs. Also, perceptions of patients' about their voice quality before and after therapy were assessed by visual analogue scale. RESULTS: Perceptually, Consensus Auditory Perceptual Evaluation of Voice (CAPE-V) ratings improved in all patients with both treatment methods. Acoustically, with CVM, harmonic-to-noise ratio and Cepstral Peak Prominence increased and perturbation (jitter and shimmer) measures decreased and there was not significant change in MCT and control groups. Visual analogue scale showed that feelings of patients improved after therapy in both treatment methods, with higher scores for patients receiving CVM in comparison to the MCT method. DISCUSSION: These results suggest that CVM can be an effective method for voice rehabilitation in patients with MTD and manipulation of Cricothyroid muscle and ''visor'' mechanism can lead to marked voice improvement.

Variables Associated with Self-reported Language Impairment in Multiple Sclerosis: A Regression Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) can experience language-related symptoms such as difficulty with word finding, understanding verbal information, and structuring discourse. These symptoms have negative psychological and interpersonal consequences. Studies exploring characteristics of language impairment in MS are limited. The aim of this study was to investigate what symptom-related (eg, fatigue), demographic (eg, age), clinical (eg, MS type), social network, and quality of life (QOL) variables are associated with language impairment in MS. METHODS: Participants were recruited internationally to complete an online questionnaire. A forward stepwise regression analysis was run with the dependent variable being a language impairment index from the Communication and Language Assessment questionnaire for persons with Multiple Sclerosis (CLAMS). Nineteen independent variables were entered into the regression. RESULTS: Two hundred and two participants completed the questionnaire. The CLAMS language impairment score was significantly associated with self-reported cognitive impairment, speech and voice impairment, yes/no response to a binary question on presence of language impairment, group membership and participation, and QOL. The adjusted R2 value was 0.717 (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Self-reported language impairment in MS is significantly associated with several symptom-related, social network, and QOL variables. These results provide an early model of language impairment in MS to guide future studies of treatment approaches and causative relationships between variables.

An Automated Lexical Stress Classification Tool for Assessing Dysprosody in Childhood Apraxia of Speech.

Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) commonly affects the production of lexical stress contrast in polysyllabic words. Automated classification tools have the potential to increase reliability and efficiency in measuring lexical stress. Here, factors affecting the accuracy of a custom-built deep neural network (DNN)-based classification tool are evaluated. Sixteen children with typical development (TD) and 26 with CAS produced 50 polysyllabic words. Words with strong-weak (SW, e.g., dinosaur) or WS (e.g., banana) stress were fed to the classification tool, and the accuracy measured (a) against expert judgment, (b) for speaker group, and (c) with/without prior knowledge of phonemic errors in the sample. The influence of segmental features and participant factors on tool accuracy was analysed. Linear mixed modelling showed significant interaction between group and stress type, surviving adjustment for age and CAS severity. For TD, agreement for SW and WS words was >80%, but CAS speech was higher for SW (>80%) than WS (~60%). Prior knowledge of segmental errors conferred no clear advantage. Automatic lexical stress classification shows promise for identifying errors in children's speech at diagnosis or with treatment-related change, but accuracy for WS words in apraxic speech needs improvement. Further training of algorithms using larger sets of labelled data containing impaired speech and WS words may increase accuracy.