Our district recently purchased an ultrasound probe for the Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs) to use in therapy. We were lucky to be trained by Penelope Bacsfalvi to use the ultrasound with school age children . This type of equipment has been shown to help students make greater gains while working with the SLP on articulation goals. We are very excited to be able to have this equipment as part of our "speech toolbox".
This is a link to the UBC School of Audiology and Speech Sciences website with info for SLPs about how to use the ultrasound.
http://www.audiospeech.ubc.ca/research/child-phonology-phonetics-and-language-acquisiton-lab/ultrasound-in-speech-training
Here are some references about using ultrasound as part of speech therapy services:
The Use of Ultrasound in Remediation of North American English /r/ in 2 Adolescents. Adler-Bock, Marcy; Bernhardt, Barbara May; Gick, Bryan; Bacsfalvi, Penelope. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, May2007, Vol. 16 Issue 2, p128-139, 12p
Abstract:Purpose: Ultrasound can provide images of the tongue during speech production. The present study set out to examine the potential utility of ultrasound in remediation of North American English /r/. Method: The participants were 2 Canadian English-speaking adolescents who had not yet acquired /r/. The study included an initial period without ultrasound and 13 treatment sessions, each 1 hr long, using ultrasound. Speech samples were recorded at screening and immediately before and after treatment. Samples were analyzed acoustically and with listener judgments. Ultrasound images were obtained before, during, and after the treatment period. Results: Three speech-language pathologists unfamiliar with the participants rated significantly more posttreatment tokens as accurate [r]s in single words and some phrases. Acoustic analyses showed an expected lowering of the third formant after treatment. A qualitative observation of posttreatment ultrasound images for accurate [r] tokens showed tongue shapes to be more similar to those of typical adults than had been observed before treatment. Participants needed continued practice of their newly acquired skills in sentences and conversation. Conclusion: Two-dimensional dynamic ultrasound appears to have potential utility for remediation of /r/ in speakers with residual /r/ impairment. Further research is needed with larger numbers of participants to establish the relative efficacy of ultrasound in treatment.
Attaining the lingual components of /r/ with ultrasound for three adolescents with cochlear implants. Bacsfalvi, P. et al. Canadian Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, Vol. 34, No. 3, fall 2010
Abstract: Children with hearing loss frequently have diffi culty learning North American English /r/. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the remediation of North American English /r/ by establishing its tongue movement components for three adolescents with recent cochlear implants (CIs) through the use of ultrasound as an adjunct to speech therapy. The three adolescents had all been diagnosed with severe-to-profound bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, and had recently received unilateral CIs. All three students wore a hearing aid in their other ear. Ultrasound was used to assist in establishing the gestural components of /r/ as a starting point for accurate /r/ production: tongue root retraction, retrofl exion or bunching and midline grooving. A single subject design was used, with analyses of the gestural components of /r/ before, during and after intervention. All participants were able to learn the gestural components of /r/ with ultrasound. Furthermore, one of the participants gained accurate production of /r/ in isolation and at the word level.
Ultrasound as visual feedback in speech habilitation: exploring consultative use in rural British Columbia, Canada. Bernhardt MB, Bacsfalvi P, Adler-Bock M, Shimizu R, Cheney A, Giesbrecht N, O'connell M, Sirianni J, Radanov B. Clinical Linguistic Phonetics. 2008 Feb;22(2):149-62.
Abstract: Ultrasound has shown promise as a visual feedback tool in speech therapy. Rural clients, however, often have minimal access to new technologies. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate consultative treatment using ultrasound in rural communities. Two speech-language pathologists (SLPs) trained in ultrasound use provided consultation with ultrasound in rural British Columbia to 13 school-aged children with residual speech impairments. Local SLPs provided treatment without ultrasound before and after the consultation. Speech samples were transcribed phonetically by independent trained listeners. Eleven children showed greater gains in production of the principal target /[image omitted]/ after the ultrasound consultation. Four of the seven participants who received more consultation time with ultrasound showed greatest improvement. Individual client factors also affected outcomes. The current study was a quasi-experimental clinic-based study. Larger, controlled experimental studies are needed to provide ultimate evaluation of the consultative use of ultrasound in speech therapy.
Long-term outcomes of speech therapy for seven adolescents with visual feedback technologies: Ultrasound and electropalatography. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics. Bacsfalvi, P. & Bernhardt, B.M. November 2011, Vol. 25, No. 11-12 , Pages 1034-1043
This follow-up study investigated the speech production of seven adolescents and young adults with hearing impairment 2–4 years after speech intervention with ultrasound and electropalatography. Perceptual judgments by seven expert listeners revealed that five out of seven speakers either continued to generalize post-treatment or maintained their level of performance post-treatment. Targets included fricatives, vowels and the rhotic /ɹ/. Speakers ranged in age from 14 to 19 years. Listeners were considered to be expert listeners. All listeners had extensive backgrounds in phonetics and phonology and were speech-language pathologists. This long-term investigation revealed that speech habilitation with visual feedback tools as adjuncts to therapy appeared to have lasting effects. The implications for habilitation include reduced therapy times and outcomes not previously possible.
