1,720,996 research outputs found
Biplanar Ultrasound Investigation of Tongue Shape during Mastication: A Tale of Two Textures
Full text linkTongue movement in chewing is complex and three-dimensional. The present study explored quantitative features of tongue movement during mastication of two solid textures (almond vs beef jerky). Temporally linked sagittal and coronal real-time ultrasound tongue videos from nine typical participants were analyzed using outcome measures of chew duration, cumulative displacement, and surface concavity. There was greater posterior tongue travel for the almond texture, and a longer chew duration for beef. Cumulative tongue displacement was significantly greater for the posterior tongue. The concavity distributions showed mostly flatness in the coronal view, and mainly convexity in the sagittal view. A principal component analysis demonstrated that the front and back of the tongue moved independently, with lateral free margins clustering with the center and back. The new measures served to describe global aspects of tongue movement. Future research should test these global measures in clinical populations with typical and disordered chewing.M.Sc
Evaluation of the Toronto Palatal Lift Prosthesis for Patients with Hypernasal Resonance Disorders
No full textStatement of the problem. Hypernasality resulting from velopharyngeal insufficiency or incompetency is a resonance disorder that has negative consequences for speech production and intelligibility of afflicted individuals.
Purpose. The purpose of this prospective study is to ascertain if a palatal lift prosthesis with a generic silicon velar lamina, termed the Toronto Palatal Lift Prosthesis (TPLP), can assist velopharyngeal valve function to reduce hypernasality in patients.
Methods. A prospective study of six patients treated with the TPLP was compared by the outcome measures of nasalance scores, perceptual evaluations, and patient satisfaction to those obtained using a contemporary acrylic palatal lift prosthesis.
Results. The six patients had varying degrees of reduction in hypernasality and acceptance of the TPLP.
Conclusion. On the basis of this preliminary study on the TPLP it is possible to fabricate a palatal lift prosthesis with a generic silicon velar lamina that reduces hypernasality in select patients.MAS
The Effect of Rapid Palatal Expander Appliances on Speech
Full text linkBackground: Rapid palatal expanders have a screw that covers the palate and may affect speech.
Methods: RPEs were treatment planned for 22 patients. Speech recordings were completed at 6 different time points. Analysis for speech acceptability, /i/ vowel formants, and /s/ and /∫/ fricative spectra were analyzed.
Results: When the appliance was inserted, speech acceptability deteriorated but improved over time. For vowel /i/, the first formant increased and second formant decreased. For fricatives (/s/, /∫/), low to high frequency ratios indicated that the sounds were distorted when the appliance was inserted. The formants and ratios returned to normal levels over time. Examination of the four spectral moments found the spectral mean decreased, standard deviation increased, skewness became more positive, and kurtosis decreased at appliance insertion. Repeated measures ANOVAs found significant effects for time for all acoustic measures.
Conclusions: Speech was altered when the appliance was inserted, but improved over time.MAS
Assessment, Control and Modification of Oral-nasal Balance in Speech
Full text linkIn normal speech, oral sounds resonate in the oral cavity, and nasal sounds such as m, and n resonate in the nasal cavities. The velopharyngeal sphincter closes for oral sounds and opens for nasal sounds. The studies presented in this thesis sought to advance the assessment, control and modification of oral-nasal balance in speech. While the research was carried out in normal speakers, the intention was to create knowledge that will ultimately improve the assessment and behavioural treatment of speakers with oral-nasal balance disorders due to cleft palate.
The first study (de Boer and Bressmann, 2016 a) was a retrospective analysis of normal speakers simulating different disorders of oral-nasal balance (hypernasality, hyponasality and mixed nasality). The recordings were analyzed acoustically using Long Term Averaged Spectra. The simulations produced distinctive spectra enabling the creation of formulas that predicted the oral-nasal balance well above chance level.
The second study (de Boer Bressmann, 2017) explored the role of auditory feedback in the regulation of oral-nasal balance in speech. In an altered auditory feedback paradigm, speakers of Canadian English compensated more for increased nasality than decreased nasality. This suggested that the speakers were less critical of a lack of nasality (hyponasality) than excess nasality (hypernasality).
The third study (de Boer, Marino, Berti, Fabron, Bressmann, 2016) investigated how voice focus affects oral-nasal balance in normal Brazilian speaking individuals. Participants read stimuli with their normal voice, a backward focus and a forward focus. The mean nasalance scores of the stimuli in the backward focus and normal speaking conditions were significantly lower than in the forward focus condition. The results confirmed that speaking focus influences oral-nasal balance in normal speakers, which could be useful for the development of new approaches of behavioural therapy.
The research presented expands our understanding of oral-nasal balance control and lays the groundwork for new ways of clinically assessing and managing oral-nasal balance disorders.Ph.D
The Effect of Rapid Palatal Expander Appliances on Speech
No full textBackground: Rapid palatal expanders have a screw that covers the palate and may affect speech.
Methods: RPEs were treatment planned for 22 patients. Speech recordings were completed at 6 different time points. Analysis for speech acceptability, /i/ vowel formants, and /s/ and /∫/ fricative spectra were analyzed.
Results: When the appliance was inserted, speech acceptability deteriorated but improved over time. For vowel /i/, the first formant increased and second formant decreased. For fricatives (/s/, /∫/), low to high frequency ratios indicated that the sounds were distorted when the appliance was inserted. The formants and ratios returned to normal levels over time. Examination of the four spectral moments found the spectral mean decreased, standard deviation increased, skewness became more positive, and kurtosis decreased at appliance insertion. Repeated measures ANOVAs found significant effects for time for all acoustic measures.
Conclusions: Speech was altered when the appliance was inserted, but improved over time.MAS
Evaluation of the Toronto Palatal Lift Prosthesis for Patients with Hypernasal Resonance Disorders
Full text linkStatement of the problem. Hypernasality resulting from velopharyngeal insufficiency or incompetency is a resonance disorder that has negative consequences for speech production and intelligibility of afflicted individuals.
Purpose. The purpose of this prospective study is to ascertain if a palatal lift prosthesis with a generic silicon velar lamina, termed the Toronto Palatal Lift Prosthesis (TPLP), can assist velopharyngeal valve function to reduce hypernasality in patients.
Methods. A prospective study of six patients treated with the TPLP was compared by the outcome measures of nasalance scores, perceptual evaluations, and patient satisfaction to those obtained using a contemporary acrylic palatal lift prosthesis.
Results. The six patients had varying degrees of reduction in hypernasality and acceptance of the TPLP.
Conclusion. On the basis of this preliminary study on the TPLP it is possible to fabricate a palatal lift prosthesis with a generic silicon velar lamina that reduces hypernasality in select patients.MAS
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
The Impact of Fan-type Rapid Palatal Expanders on Speech in Patients with Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate
Full text linkFan-type rapid palatal expanders (RPEs) can affect tongue movement and speech because of their position and size. The present study investigated the effects on the speech of 25 patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate. Speech questionnaires (patients and parents) and standardized speech recordings (patients) were analyzed prospectively for psychosocial burden, vowel space, fricative articulation, and oral-nasal balance before insertion, after insertion, during expansion, during retention, after removal, and at 3-months follow-up after removal. RPE insertion resulted in an increase in dysfunction and distress, no change for the vowel /a/, an increase in the first formant for the vowel /i/ with a decrease in the second formant for the vowels /i/ and /u/, a decrease in the spectral means for the fricatives /s/, /ʃ/, and /z/, as well as no change in nasalance. All measures returned to baseline levels before removal. Speech was adversely, albeit transiently, affected by an RPE.M.Sc
The Effects of Palatal Expansion on Speech Articulation in Children with Unilateral vs. Bilateral Cleft Lip and Palate: A Prospective Cohort Study
Full text linkIntroduction: Children with cleft lip and palate (CLP) often require palatal expansion before secondary alveolar bone grafting (SABG). As individuals with CLP frequently experience speech disorders, the expander may further impact speech due to the space it occupies intraorally. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of expansion and cleft type on speech outcomes. Methods: Speech recordings and self-perception questionnaires were collected from 30 patients (16 bilateral and 14 unilateral CLP) at six time points: before expansion (T1), after expander insertion (T2), during expansion (T3), during retention (T4), after expander removal (T5), and after SABG (T6). Results: Significant changes in speech ratings were observed over time (p < 0.01), while cleft type had no effect. Both time and cleft type significantly influenced consonant spectral means and high vowel formants (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Palatal expansion adversely affected self-perceived and acoustic speech measures, with cleft type further influencing some acoustic outcomes.M.Sc
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