Speech Sound Disorder
Conditions
Keywords
Speech and Language, Children, Treatment, Ultrasound
Brief summary
This prospective randomized controlled trial investigates the effect of ultrasound visual biofeedback as an adjunct to articulation therapy in children with speech sound disorders involving lingual targets. The intervention aims to facilitate acquisition of misarticulated sounds by providing real-time visualization of tongue movements. Participants are randomized 1:1 to immediate treatment or wait-list control, with stratification by disorder type, age, and gender where feasible. The wait-list control group continues usual care for 4 weeks before crossing over to receive the same intervention (ethical crossover design).
Interventions
BEHAVIORALUltrasound-aided articulation therapy
The intervention under investigation is a motor-phonetic approach to articulation therapy, enhanced with ultrasound visual biofeedback (UVBF). The treatment group will receive the intervention immediately, while the waitlist control group will receive treatment after the initial group completes the study. This design allows for comparative outcome assessments between both groups, ensuring that all participants ultimately receive treatment.
Sponsors
The University of Hong Kong
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
CROSSOVER
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Outcomes Assessor)
Intervention model description
Participants will be randomly assigned to either the treatment group (n=30) or the waitlist control group (n=30), and stratified to the groups by disorders, age and gender whenever possible. The treatment group will receive the intervention immediately, while the waitlist control group will not receive the treatment until the initial treatment group has completed the study. This design allows for a comparison of outcomes between the treatment and control groups, while also ensuring that all participants have the opportunity to receive the treatment.
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
5 Years to 12 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Primary diagnosis of speech sound disorder with errors on lingual target sounds * Probe accuracy \<70% on the primary target sound at baseline * Cantonese as the first language * Hearing thresholds ≤25 dB in at least one ear, with no hearing loss exceeding 50 dB in the other ear * No syndromes or obvious dysmorphic features * No language disorders associated with biomedical conditions (e.g., cerebral palsy, autism spectrum disorder) * No oronasal fistula identified on oral examination or diagnosed velopharyngeal insufficiency
Exclusion criteria
* Presence of syndromes or dysmorphic features * Language disorder associated with biomedical conditions (e.g., cerebral palsy, autism spectrum disorder) * Hearing thresholds \>25 dB in one ear and \>50 dB in the other ear Planned surgical intervention during the study period
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 20-item probe list accuracy | Week0, Week4, Week8, Week16 | Perceptual accuracy on an individualized 20-item target sound probe spanning varying linguistic levels (single words to narrative), reported in percentage. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligibility in Context Scale (ICS): Traditional Chinese | Week1, Week 8, Week 16 | A 7-item parent-report measure of functional intelligibility across communication partners (parents, immediate family, extended family, friends, acquaintances, teachers, strangers), rated on a 5-point scale for each item (total averaged score 1-5); higher scores indicate better intelligibility. |
| Percentage Consonants Correct (PCC) | Week0, Week 16 | Derived from standardized perceptual speech assessment (HKCAT), a standardized word-level articulation test. PCC was calculated as the number of consonants produced correctly divided by total consonants, expressed as a percentage. |
| PedsQL TM (Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory TM) | Week 0, Week 8,Week 16 | A 23-item child self-report and parent-proxy measure of health-related quality of life across physical, emotional, social, and school functioning domains (score range 0-100); higher scores indicate better health-related quality of life. |
| Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) | Week 0, Week 8, Week16 | A 25-item parent-report behavioral screening tool assessing emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity, peer problems, and prosocial behavior (total difficulties score range 0-40); higher scores indicate more behavioral difficulties. |
| Parental Stress Scale (PSS) | Week0, Week 8, Week 16 | An 18-item parent self-report measure of stress associated with parenting (score range 18-90); higher scores indicate greater parenting stress. |
Countries
Hong Kong
Contacts
CONTACTOi Yan Yoyo Yiu
Outcome results
None listed