Communication Sciences and Disorders Commons^™

Voice Quality Assessment In Cases Of Vocal Fold Gaps After Single Growth Factor Injection, Amr Roushdyel Badrawy, Asmaa Abdel Hamid, Israa Eltaweel, Azza Abdel Aziz Azzam

Journal of Medicine in Scientific Research

In severe vocal fold (VF) lesions, deposits of disorganized, thick collagen bundles and little hyaluronic acid (HA) are deposited in the superficial layer of lamina propria (SLP). These changes lead to severe dysphonia and aspiration, which could be complicated by fatal pneumonia. Unfortunately, no specific treatment has been recognized due to unpredictable VF regeneration. Current progress in regenerative medicine has allowed the development of tissue engineering techniques using cells, scaffolds, and growth factors (GFs). Extrinsic GFs application could help in the induction of the regenerative process. The work aims to assess the voice quality after a single GF injection of …

The Effects Of Exercise On Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Julia Hofacker

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This Honors Research Project will look at the impact of various types of exercise on the speech, language, and behavior of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. The goal of this research project is to determine how exercise can be implemented into speech and therapy programs in order to better improve the communication skills of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. To accomplish this, recent studies and publications will be analyzed to compare traditional therapy methods and therapy methods that include exercise. These studies will provide data on how various types of exercise impacted adolescents with autism spectrum disorder speech, language, behavior, …

It's Never Too Soon! Comparing Intercultural Learning Outcomes Of Undergraduate Students Via Face-To-Face And Online Teaching Modalities, Aparajita Jaiswal, Christi Masters, Lan Jin, Tanvin Inani, Annika Schenkel, Muna Sapkota, Lata Krishnan

Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences Faculty Publications

Purpose: Providing culturally responsive care for a diverse patient population is critical for future speech-language pathologists and audiologists. Prior studies have shown gains in intercultural competence (ICC) from study abroad programs, face-to-face classes, and online courses; however, limited studies have investigated differences between face-to-face and online modes of delivery in speech-language pathology and audiology. The purpose of this study was (a) to evaluate whether there are quantitative differences in development of ICC in a direct comparison of a face-to-face and 100% asynchronous online introductory in communication dis-orders, and (b) to describe participants learning through the structural intercultural learning activities embedded …

Pressure Induced By Roll-Down Foam-Earplugs On Earcanal, Ahmed Dalaq, Luiz Melo, Franck Sgard, Olivier Doutres, Éric Wagnac

Études primaires

Physical discomfort of earplug is a common complaint, so much so it jeopardizes the health and safety of workers, resulting in frequent noncompliance to proper wearing of earplugs. A pressing need thus arises to understand the underlying mechanics for the interaction of earplugs with earcanal walls. An idealized cylindrical geometry of earcanal is first treated with computational and analytical modeling to predict the pressure induced by roll-down cylindrical PVC foam earplugs. In order to predict representative pressure values and distribution, we estimated the hyperelastic properties of foam-based earplugs and characterized their behavior using a stent testing machine (J-Crimp^TM machine) …

Traumatic Brain Injury In Pediatrics, Natalie Deibel

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is an acquired brain injury as a result of an external force to the head. Common causes for these injuries include falls, motor vehicle accidents, sports, and abuse. The affected location of the brain, severity, and age at the time of injury affect what deficits are present. Resulting deficits can be in speech, language, behavior, motor, and cognition/executive functions (Manasco, 2020). Traumatic brain injuries can affect all ages. No parent wants to experience their child going through this. TBIs do not just affect the patient but also loved ones. During this difficult time, parents or caregivers …

Speech-Language Pathology Students' Perspective Of Working With Older Adults, Anna Hamill

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

There is an increasing demand for speech language pathologists (SLPs) willing to work with older adults. Demographic trends warn that the number of people over 65 will double by 2050 (Vincent, 2010). Studies reveal that only 37.3% of SLP students prefer to work with older adults after graduation (Leonard et al., 2016). Ageism is affecting speech-language pathology and related health care professions. Research within the last five years has shown that ageism towards older adults exists across multiple medical professions in all fields and settings (Heape et al., 2020). Interdisciplinary fields report negative feelings towards older adults (Ortiz-Rubio et al., …

The Impact Of Bowl Feeding On Infant Muscle Activity And Kinematics - An Executive Summary, Kendall Steer

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Addressing difficulties with swallowing is a small, yet critical portion of a speech-language pathologist’s role. Infants often experience challenges associated with swallowing safely, yet the ability of SLPs to prescribe effective interventions is limited by the lack of knowledge on how anatomy and physiology interact to drive these challenges. The goal of my Honors Research Project is to address this lack of knowledge by determining how the infant pig tongue moves during feeding from a bottle versus drinking from a bowl, as well as how the muscles controlling the tongue differ in these behaviors. I used infant pigs for this …

Professional Development In Phonological Awareness For Early Childhood Educators In Low-Income, Urban Classrooms: A Pilot Study Examining Dosage Effects, Jayne E. Jaskolski, Maura Jones Moyle

Speech Pathology and Audiology Faculty Research and Publications

Providing high-quality literacy instruction in early childhood may positively affect the long-term outcomes of children from disadvantaged backgrounds. Previous research has shown that educators are generally lacking in their own phonological awareness knowledge and skills which could negatively impact the provision of effective instruction in code-focused early literacy skills. The purposes of this pilot study were to examine the effects of differing dosages of professional development in phonological awareness on early childhood educators’ (ECEs) own phonological awareness skills and instructional practices, and to examine the effects on child outcomes. The comparison group consisted of 10 ECEs who were receiving professional …

An Exploration Of Quality Of Life Perceptions Of Cochlear Implant Recipients And Their Frequent Communication Partners, Jessica L. Bishop, Ashley G. Flagge

Ashley Flagge Publications

Purpose: Quality of life (QoL) after cochlear implantation has been investigated using a variety of QoL questionnaires. However, few studies have examined the perceived QoL of cochlear implant (CI) recipients compared between the recipient and a frequent communication partner (FCP) using both hearing-related (hearing-specific), and health-general (health-general) measures.

Method: For this multiple case study, five participant pairs were recruited, consisting of five adult recipients who were implanted at least six months prior to the time of evaluation, and five adult frequent communication partners who lived with the recipient at the time of evaluation. All ten participants (five pairs) completed a …

Revisiting The Rainbow: Culturally Responsive Updates To A Standard Clinical Resource, Angela M. Dietsch, Richard Mocarski, Debra A. Hope, Nathan Woodruff, Miechelle Mckelvey

Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders: Faculty Publications

Purpose

Cultural responsivity is essential for efficacious and affirming clinical relationships. This may be especially important with historically marginalized clients, such as transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) people seeking behaviorally based affirming communication services. We recommend modifications to standard tools for diagnostics and training that otherwise might undermine our efforts to create an inclusive and affirming environment.

Method

Modifications to the Rainbow Passage, a standardized paragraph utilized for eliciting speech samples in clinical settings, focused on nongendered terminology and the elimination of content with religious connotations.

Results

The recommended edits to the Rainbow Passage maintain similar length, cadence, and phonetic balance …

Brain Activity Associated With Taste Stimulation: A Mechanism For Neuroplastic Change?, Angela M. Dietsch, Ross M. Westemeyer, Douglas H. Schultz

Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders: Faculty Publications

Purpose: Neuroplasticity may be enhanced by increasing brain activation and bloodflow in neural regions relevant to the target behavior.We administered precisely formulated and dosed taste stimuli to determine whether the associated brain activity patterns included areas that underlie swallowing control.

Methods: Five taste stimuli (unflavored, sour, sweet-sour, lemon, and orange suspensions) were administered in timing-regulated and temperature-controlled 3 mL doses via a customized pump/tubing system to 21 healthy adults during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Whole-brain analyses of fMRI data assessed main effects of taste stimulation as well as differential effects of taste profile.

Results: Differences in …

Tagalog And English Core Communication Boards For Tagalog-English Bilingual Children In The Philippines, Vianca A. Ocampo

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

A large proportion of children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices to communicate are bilingual. Although many AAC devices allow access to each of the bilinguals’ languages, the devices are designed in such a way that access is limited to a single language at a time. Further, most devices contain translated vocabulary from English into the bilinguals’ other language. This study aimed to fill this gap by identifying core vocabulary words from narrative language samples of 4-year-old bilingual children to create ecologically valid communication boards. The language samples were analyzed to obtain the most frequently and commonly produced …

Investigating The Quality Of Life For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder Scale Using Rasch Methodology, Laura C. Chezan, Jin Liu, Ruiqin Gao, Erik Drasgow

Communication Disorders & Special Education Faculty Publications

Our purpose in this study was to provide additional psychometric evidence of the Quality of Life for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (QOLASD-C) scale. We used Rasch modeling to investigate the QOLASD-C functioning, the characteristics of the items comprising the scale, and the item functioning across subgroups of children with ASD based on gender and race/ethnicity. Results showed that QOLASD-C was unidimensional, met the local independence assumption, and measured quality of life (QOL). The items showed excellent fit to the model and good discriminating ability between low and high QOL. Most items showed a moderate difficulty level. No differential item …

Impact Of Community-Based Go Baby Go Project On Interprofessional Collaboration, Sapna Chakraborty, Marc Willey, Lisa Proctor

Journal of Occupational Therapy Education

Interprofessional education and collaborative practice (IPEC) are essential components of healthcare teams in the United States. This study aimed to explore the impact of a community-based Go Baby Go (GBG) project that used assistive technology and environmental adaptation skills to provide interprofessional education and hands-on collaboration between occupational therapy and speech-language pathology graduate students. The interprofessional collaboration (IPC) experiences provided to graduate students were centered on shared lectures and labs on role delineation, evaluation, and treatment focused on modifications through assistive technology and environmental adaptation. The culminating experience included labs with three to four students from each discipline in a …

Parent-Child Interaction Therapy For Children With Disruptive Behaviors And Autism: A Randomized Clinical Trial, Korrie Allen, John Harrington, Lauren B. Quetsch, Joshua Masse, Cathy Cooke, James F. Paulson

Psychology Faculty Publications

A relatively large number of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit disruptive behavioral problems. While accumulating data have shown behavioral parent training programs to be efficacious in reducing disruptive behaviors for this population, there is a dearth of literature examining the impact of such programs across the range of ASD severity. To evaluate the effectiveness of Parent–Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), an evidence-based treatment for children with problem behaviors and their families, in reducing disruptive behaviors among children (4–10 years) with ASD (without intellectual disabilities). Fifty-five children (85.5% male, 7.15 years; SD 1.72) were enrolled from pediatric offices and educational …

Enhancing Nonverbal Communication Through Virtual Human Technology: Protocol For A Mixed Methods Study, Analay Perez, Michael D. Fetters, John W. Creswell, Mark Scerbo, Frederick W. Kron, Richard Gonzalez, Lawrence An, Masahito Jimbo, Predrag Klasnja, Timothy C. Guetterman

Psychology Faculty Publications

Background: Communication is a critical component of the patient-provider relationship; however, limited research exists on the role of nonverbal communication. Virtual human training is an informatics-based educational strategy that offers various benefits in communication skill training directed at providers. Recent informatics-based interventions aimed at improving communication have mainly focused on verbal communication, yet research is needed to better understand how virtual humans can improve verbal and nonverbal communication and further elucidate the patient-provider dyad.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to enhance a conceptual model that incorporates technology to examine verbal and nonverbal components of communication and develop a …

Transition Class: A Bridge From Early Intervention To Early Childhood Special Education, Jamie Mahurin-Smith, Ciera M. Lorio

Faculty Publications – Communication Sciences and Disorders

Transitions are widely acknowledged to present challenges for young children with special needs. In the US system, the transition from early intervention (EI; services for children aged 0–3) to early childhood special education services (ECSE; services for preschool children) is a process known to cause uncertainty and anxiety for families. This paper describes a transition class offered by a midwestern US EI agency; children receiving EI services are eligible to participate beginning at age 2;6. Agency personnel chart the children’s progress each week. For this study, researchers reviewed de-identified weekly progress reports for the 40 transition class participants who attended …

Principles And Philosophies For Speech And Language Therapists Working With People With Primary Progressive Aphasia: An International Expert Consensus, A. Volkmer, J. Cartwright, L. Ruggero, A. Beales, J. Gallée, S. Grasso, M. Henry, R. Jokel, J. Kindell, R. Khayum, M. Pozzebon, E. Rochon, C. Taylor-Rubin, R. Townsend, F. Walker, S. Beeke, Deborah Hersh

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Purpose:

Primary progressive aphasia (PPA) is a language-led dementia associated with Alzheimer’s pathology and fronto-temporal lobar degeneration. Multiple tailored speech and language interventions have been developed for people with PPA. Speech and language therapists/speech-language pathologists (SLT/Ps) report lacking confidence in identifying the most pertinent interventions options relevant to their clients living with PPA during their illness trajectory.

Materials and methods:

The aim of this study was to establish a consensus amongst 15 clinical-academic SLT/Ps on best practice in selection and delivery of speech and language therapy interventions for people with PPA. An online nominal group technique (NGT) and consequent focus …

Plasma Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein Is Associated With 18f-Smbt-1 Pet: Two Putative Astrocyte Reactivity Biomarkers For Alzheimer's Disease, Pratishtha Chatterjee, Vincent Doré, Steve Pedrini, Natasha Krishnadas, Rohith Thota, Pierrick Bourgeat, Milos D. Ikonomovic, Stephanie R. Rainey-Smith, Samantha C. Burnham, Christopher Fowler, Kevin Taddei, Rachel Mulligan, David Ames, Colin L. Masters, Jürgen Fripp, Christopher C. Rowe, Ralph N. Martins, Victor L. Villemagne, Aibl Research Group

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background:

Astrocyte reactivity is an early event along the Alzheimer's disease (AD) continuum. Plasma glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), posited to reflect astrocyte reactivity, is elevated across the AD continuum from preclinical to dementia stages. Monoamine oxidase-B (MAO-B) is also elevated in reactive astrocytes observed using ¹⁸F-SMBT-1 PET in AD.

Objective:

The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between the abovementioned astrocyte reactivity biomarkers.

Methods:

Plasma GFAP and Aβ were measured using the Simoa^® platform in participants who underwent brain ¹⁸F-SMBT-1 and Aβ-PET imaging, comprising 54 healthy control (13 Aβ-PET+ and 41 Aβ-PET-), 11 …

Perceptual Ratings Of Pronunciation For L2 Learners Of English As A Function Of Task Type, Word Position, And Listener Expertise, Shawn L. Nissen, Rachel Kemmey, K. James Hartshorn

Faculty Publications

Abstract Second language (L2) learners of English must learn to pro-duce English phonemes, words, and sentences. These L2learners make many errors when learning English; they may change the place or manner of articulation, insert vowels, or delete consonants. Obstruent sounds, such as fricatives, affricates, and stops, can be especially difficult for L2 learners. This study analyzed native English speakers’ perception of the quality of obstruents produced by native Mandarin Chinese and Korean speakers. Target words containing obstruents had been produced in three different tasks: in a carrier phrase, in a paragraph, and in a spontaneous speechsample. Obstruents were produced in …