Effect of hearing training on hearing and speech skills in children with speech sound disorders.

Purpose: to measure the effect of Brief Computerized Auditory Training (Brief-CAT) on behavioral auditory and speech skills in children with Speech Sound Disorder (SSD).

Methods: 14 children, aged 6 and 9, diagnosed with SSD participated. All children presented one or more altered auditory skills in the behavioral assessment of Central Auditory Processing (CAP). They underwent six sessions of Brief-CAT. CAP's behavioral auditory skills and speech were assessed and a questionnaire was administered pre and post Brief-CAT. Inferential analysis was carried out.

Results: Brief-CAT had an effect on the background figure ability for verbal sounds. The CAP tests individually showed an evolution in the number of subjects who changed their profile from "altered" to "normal", even if not all of them had normalized the assessment. Prior speech therapy and the type of SSD had no impact on CAP results after Brief CAT. The questionnaire sustained the same results after intervention. Combining speech therapy with Brief-CAT offered greater potential for improving the phonological system (reducing absent sounds, increasing acquired sounds, and lowering SSD severity). Children with phonological disorders exhibited enhanced speech outcomes with combined Brief-CAT compared to those with motor speech disorders.

Conclusion: Brief-CAT proved effective in enhancing figure-background auditory abilities in children with SSD. Associating speech therapy with Brief-CAT should be the preferred therapeutic approach as it provides greater progress. The type of SSD influenced the speech performance of children undergoing Brief-CAT.