Narrative analysis in individuals with Parkinson's disease following intensive voice treatment: secondary outcome variables from a randomized controlled trial.

Communication is often impaired in individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD), typically secondary to sensorimotor deficits impacting voice and speech. Language may also be diminished in PD, particularly for production and comprehension of verbs. Evidence exists that verb processing is influenced by motor system modulation suggesting that verb deficits in PD are underpinned by similarities in the neural representations of actions that span motor and semantic systems.

Intensive Voice Treatment (Lee Silverman Voice Treatment [LSVT LOUD]) for Children With Down Syndrome: Phase I Outcomes.

Purpose: This study examined the effects of an intensive voice treatment Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT LOUD) on children with Down syndrome (DS) and motor speech disorders.

Method: A Phase I, multiple baseline, single-subject design with replication across nine participants with DS was used. Single-word intelligibility, acoustic measures of vocal functioning, and parent perceptions of pre- and posttreatment communication function were used as treatment outcome measures.

Immediate and long-term effects of speech treatment targets and intensive dosage on Parkinson's disease dysphonia and the speech motor network: Randomized controlled trial.

This study compared acoustic and neural changes accompanying two treatments matched for intensive dosage but having two different treatment targets (voice or articulation) to dissociate the effects of treatment target and intensive dosage in speech therapies. Nineteen participants with Parkinsonian dysphonia (11 F) were randomized to three groups: intensive treatment targeting voice (voice group, n = 6), targeting articulation (articulation group, n = 7), or an untreated group (no treatment, n = 6). The severity of dysphonia was assessed by the smoothed cepstral peak prominence (CPPS) and neuronal changes were evaluated by cerebral blood flow (CBF) recorded at baseline, posttreatment, and 7-month follow-up.

Single Word Intelligibility of Individuals with Parkinson's Disease in Noise: Pre-Specified Secondary Outcome Variables from a Randomized Control Trial (RCT) Comparing Two Intensive Speech Treatments (LSVT LOUD vs. LSVT ARTIC).

The majority of people with Parkinson's disease (PD) experience both prosodic changes (reduced vocal volume, reduced pitch range) and articulatory changes (imprecise articulation) that often limit speech intelligibility and may contribute to significant declines in quality of life. We conducted a randomized control trial comparing two intensive treatments, voice (LSVT LOUD) or articulation (LSVT ARTIC) to assess single word intelligibility in the presence of background noise (babble and mall). Participants (64 PD and 20 Healthy) read words from the diagnostic rhyme test (DRT), an ANSI Standard for measuring intelligibility of speech, before and after one month (treatment or no treatment).

Speech treatment in Parkinson's disease: Randomized controlled trial (RCT).

Background: As many as 89% of people with Parkinson's disease (PD) develop speech disorders.

Objectives: This randomized controlled trial evaluated two speech treatments for PD matched in intensive dosage and high-effort mode of delivery, differing in subsystem target: voice (respiratory-laryngeal) versus articulation (orofacial-articulatory).

Methods: PD participants were randomized to 1-month LSVT LOUD (voice), LSVT ARTIC (articulation), or UNTXPD (untreated) groups.

Innovative technology for the assisted delivery of intensive voice treatment (LSVT®LOUD) for Parkinson disease.

Purpose: To assess the feasibility and effectiveness of a newly developed assistive technology system, Lee Silverman Voice Treatment Companion (LSVT(®) Companion™, hereafter referred to as "Companion"), to support the delivery of LSVT(®)LOUD, an efficacious speech intervention for individuals with Parkinson disease (PD).

Method: Sixteen individuals with PD were randomized to an immediate (n = 8) or a delayed (n = 8) treatment group. They participated in 9 LSVT LOUD sessions and 7 Companion sessions, independently administered at home.

Impact of four nonclinical speaking environments on a child's fundamental frequency and voice level: a preliminary case study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate how a child's fundamental frequency (F(0)) and estimated voice level (dB SPL) change in distinct speaking environments.

Method: A child age 5;7 (years;months) wore a National Center for Voice and Speech voice dosimeter for 4 days. The 2 parameters measured were F(0) and dB SPL.

Intensive voice treatment (LSVT®LOUD) for Parkinson's disease following deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus.

Purpose: Intensive voice therapy (LSVT(®)LOUD) can effectively manage voice and speech symptoms associated with idiopathic Parkinson disease (PD). This small-group study evaluated voice and speech in individuals with and without deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN-DBS) before and after LSVT LOUD, to determine whether outcomes for surgical subjects were comparable to non-surgical cohorts.

Methods: Eight subjects with PD (four with STN-DBS and four without) received LSVT LOUD four times a week for four weeks.

The inability to produce soft voice (IPSV): a tool to detect vocal change in school-teachers.

Purpose: This study investigated whether clinicians could detect voice changes reported by teachers, from self-ratings teachers conducted of their inability to produce soft voice (IPSV).

Methods: Ten teachers wore a vocal dosimeter and completed daily IPSV ratings approximately every 2 hours for 14 days. Following the 2 weeks of dosimetry, two speech clinicians specialized in voice rated the teachers' IPSV from dosimeter recordings.

Effects of an extended version of the lee silverman voice treatment on voice and speech in Parkinson's disease.

Purpose: The present study examined vocal SPL, voice handicap, and speech characteristics in Parkinson's disease (PD) following an extended version of the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT), to help determine whether current treatment dosages can be altered without compromising clinical outcomes.

Method: Twelve participants with idiopathic PD received the extended treatment version (LSVT-X), similar to LSVT except that it was administered twice a week in 1-hr sessions over 8 weeks and required substantially more home practice. Recordings were made in a sound-treated booth immediately before and after treatment, and again 6 months later.