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- Lundeborg Hammarström, Inger, 1956-, et al.
(author)
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Scandcleft Project Trial 2—Comparison of Speech Outcome in 1- and 2-Stage Palatal Closure in 5-Year-Olds With UCLP
- 2020
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In: Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal. - : SAGE Publications. - 1055-6656 .- 1545-1569. ; 57:4, s. 458-469
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objective: To investigate in-depth speech results in the Scandcleft Trial 2 with comparisons between surgical protocols and centers and with benchmarks from peers without cleft palate. Design: A prospective randomized clinical trial. Setting: Two Swedish and one Finnish Cleft Palate center. Participants: One hundred twelve participants were 5-years-old born with unilateral cleft lip and palate randomized to either lip repair and soft palate closure at 4 months and hard palate closure at 12 months or lip repair at 3 to 4 months (Arm A), or a closure of both the soft and hard palate at 12 months (Arm C). Main Outcome Measures: A composite measure dichotomized into velopharyngeal competency (VPC) or velopharyngeal incompetency (VPI), overall assessment of velopharyngeal function (VPC-Rate), percentage of consonants correct (PCC score), and consonant errors. In addition, number of speech therapy visits, average hearing thresholds, and secondary surgeries were documented to assess burden of treatment. Results: Across the trial, 53.5% demonstrated VPC and 46.5% VPI with no significant differences between arms or centers. In total, 27% reached age-appropriate PCC scores with no statistically significant difference between the arms. The Finnish center had significantly higher PCC scores, the Swedish centers had higher percentages of oral consonant errors. Number of speech therapy visits was significantly higher in the Finnish center. Conclusion: At age 5, poor speech outcomes with some differences between participating centers were seen but could not be attributed to surgical protocol. As one center had very few participants, the results from that center should be interpreted with caution. © 2019, American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association.
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| 2. |
- Myrberg, Karin, et al.
(author)
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An evaluation of a prescribed joint book reading intervention for preschool children with speech, language and communication needs
- 2023
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In: International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. - : Taylor & Francis. - 1754-9507 .- 1754-9515. ; 25:5, s. 645-655
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: The aims of the present study were twofold: first, to investigate reading and screen time habits in a large clinical sample of caregivers of children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) before and after an 8 week intervention focussed on daily joint book reading and, second, to capture the caregivers' experiences of the activity.Method: Preschool aged children with SLCN and their caregivers were consecutively recruited during their first visit to the department of Speech and Language Pathology, Gavle County Hospital, Sweden. They participated in a survey-based interview before and after receiving an intervention with recommendations of at least 10 minutes of daily book reading with an interactional focus, as an add-on to ordinary speech-language pathology services. The results were analysed using descriptive statistics of the answers to the questions in the interview, as well as a thematic analysis of free-text comments.Result: The 135 families who participated in the pre-intervention interview survey reported variable reading frequency and screen time. The post-intervention interview survey was completed by 107 families. The results demonstrated significant increases in reading frequency and reading time, and a significant decrease in screen time per day. Caregivers also reported positive experiences of the daily interactive book reading.Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrate that a speech-language pathologist-(SLP) managed, caregiver-led book reading intervention is feasible and might have a positive impact on reading, other factors related to reading, and screen time in families of children with SLCN.
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| 3. |
- Willadsen, E., et al.
(author)
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Scandcleft randomized trials of primary surgery for unilateral cleft lip and palate: Speech proficiency at 10 years of age
- 2023
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In: International journal of language and communication disorders. - : WILEY. - 1368-2822 .- 1460-6984. ; 58:3, s. 892-909
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background & AimTo assess consonant proficiency and velopharyngeal function in 10-year-old children born with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) within the Scandcleft project. Methods & ProceduresThree parallel group, randomized, clinical trials were undertaken as an international multicentre study by nine cleft teams in five countries. Three different surgical protocols for primary palate repair (Arm B-Lip and soft palate closure at 3-4 months, hard palate closure at 36 months, Arm C-Lip closure at 3-4 months, hard and soft palate closure at 12 months, and Arm D-Lip closure at 3-4 months combined with a single-layer closure of the hard palate using a vomer flap, soft palate closure at 12 months) were tested against a common procedure (Arm A-Lip and soft palate closure at 3-4 months followed by hard palate closure at 12 months) in the total cohort of 431 children born with a non-syndromic UCLP. Speech audio and video recordings of 399 children were available and perceptually analysed. Percentage of consonants correct (PCC) from a naming test, an overall rating of velopharyngeal competence (VPC) (VPC-Rate), and a composite measure (VPC-Sum) were reported. Outcomes & ResultsThe mean levels of consonant proficiency (PCC score) in the trial arms were 86-92% and between 58% and 83% of the children had VPC (VPC-Sum). Only 50-73% of the participants had a consonant proficiency level with their peers. Girls performed better throughout. Long delay of the hard palate repair (Arm B) indicated lower PCC and simultaneous hard and soft palate closure higher (Arm C). However, the proportion of participants with primary VPC (not including velopharyngeal surgeries) was highest in Arm B (68%) and lowest in Arm C (47%). Conclusions & ImplicationsThe speech outcome in terms of PCC and VPC was low across the trials. The different protocols had their pros and cons and there is no obvious evidence to recommend any of the protocols as superior. Aspects other than primary surgical method, such as time after velopharyngeal surgery, surgical experience, hearing level, language difficulties and speech therapy, need to be thoroughly reviewed for a better understanding of what has affected speech outcome at 10 years. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDSWhat is already known on the subjectSpeech outcomes at 10 years of age in children treated for UCLP are sparse and contradictory. Previous studies have examined speech outcomes and the relationship with surgical intervention in 5-year-olds. What this study adds to the existing knowledgeSpeech outcomes based on standardized assessment in a large group of 10-year-old children born with UCLP and surgically treated according to different protocols are presented. While speech therapy had been provided, a large proportion of the children across treatment protocols still needed further speech therapy. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?Aspects other than surgery and speech function might add to the understanding of what affects speech outcome. Effective speech therapy should be available for children in addition to primary surgical repair of the cleft and secondary surgeries if needed.
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