Difficulties Associated With Childhood Apraxia Of Speech
Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) has numerous associated difficulties that make it among the more challenging speech disorders handled by speech language pathologists. But there’s also hope for children with CAS and it starts with early diagnosis and intervention.
Difficulty in Diagnosis
The first difficulty encountered by parents of children with CAS is in getting a definitive diagnosis, a difficulty also encountered by speech therapists and other medical professionals. This is due to the absence of a definitive test and/or checklist for childhood apraxia, among other reasons.
In young children, there are many disorders that can be mistaken for CAS mainly because of their similarities in signs and symptoms. CAS, for example, is often mistaken for dysarthria (i.e., poor muscle tone of the mouth) or autism, and it’s an erroneous diagnosis that will affect early intervention measures.
In fact, apraxia experts caution against an official CAS diagnosis before a child reaches three years of age. By age three, other causes for speech delays would have been ruled out and a CAS diagnosis will likely be more accurate.
Apraxia experts, nonetheless, look for red flags in young children including little to no babbling; difficulty in saying a word the same way with each try; loss of previously used words; feeding issues; absence of phonetic diversity; and limited intonation.
Even without a CAS diagnosis, however, parents should still have their child treated for speech difficulties. Speech therapy customized to the specific needs of the child is highly recommended.
Difficulty in Speech Development
Children with CAS have numerous challenges in their speech and language skills obviously. While many of these issues seem cute and charming, especially in older babies still learning to talk, these aren’t so considering that speech is an integral part of communication. When left untreated, it can affect the child’s social, mental and emotional development in the future.
While each child with CAS has a specific set of symptoms including their onset, severity and duration, the disorder is typically associated with delayed onset of the first words; the decreased ability to form consonant and/or vowel sounds; and just a few spoken words. These symptoms usually appear between 18 and 24 months although, again, these may be attributed to other causes.
The symptoms change, too, as an affected child grows older. Between 2 and 4 years old, a child with suspected CAS can exhibit symptoms like distortions in forming sounds for vowels and consonants; errors in voicing (e.g., “bye” sounds like “pie” or vice versa); and separation of the syllables within a word or between words.
But it isn’t just speech difficulties that children with CAS have to deal with. Many of them also have physical symptoms, such as difficulty in getting their lips, tongues and jaws to their correct positions.
Once a definitive diagnosis has been made, fortunately, children with CAS have high chances of improving their speech and language skills.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
Hearing Aid Prescription, and Speech Therapy
What To Expect From the Parent-Therapist Partnership
Forming a strong partnership with your child’s speech therapist is a must if and when you want your child to truly benefit from speech therapy. Yes, we understand if it feels slightly intimidating, even overwhelming, at first but it is normal so just push through your initial feelings. Your child will need his speech therapist’s guidance and your support so your partnership will be crucial in his progress.
Here are things that you can expect and you will be expected to do in this matter.
Active Participation and Observation
As a parent, you have the responsibility to continue your child’s speech therapy at home. In fact, the best results can be seen when children learn along with their parents and siblings, especially as they spend more time at home than they do inside the speech therapist’s office.
You will then be invited into the sessions to be both an active participant and an observer. You will, for example, be asked to model chewing on a carrot stick for your child or be directed about dealing with your child’s feeding aversions. You will be guided about what and how you should do something.
In many instances, you will also be sent home with specific exercises that you and your child should work on before the next appointment. You should also closely observe the goings-on during the session so you can reinforce the learning at home.
Discussion of Your Concerns
You and your child’s speech therapist will engage in in-depth discussions about your child’s challenges and progress during the treatment course. You must be open to the speech therapist’s concerns in the same way that you should be open about yours. Your give-and-take attitude is a must, too, in establishing mutual respect – and if there’s none of it, then you should consider finding another speech therapist.
The concerns that can be discussed include your family’s priorities for the treatment, the possible adjustments in treatment based on your child’s progress, and even the cost-and-benefit analysis of certain methods. Keep in mind that while the speech therapist has the professional qualifications, the parents have the ultimate responsibility for their children. Such responsibility demands that you put your child’s welfare first and foremost during treatment.
What if there doesn’t seem to be little to no progress? You and your child’s therapist will discuss possible habits at home that act as barriers to success. You have to be honest about your answers since these will have an impact on your child’s learning.
For example, you may be allowing your child to eat in front of the television instead of with the rest of the family at the dining table. You’re not actually helping your child in the development of his language skills since he has nobody else to talk to during mealtimes, not to mention that he may be feeling isolated.
Of course, your child’s speech therapist will not only provide professional guidance but, more importantly, moral support and encouragement.
If you think your child need a speech therapy, please contact us for further consulation. HK Hearing & Speech Center is a specialist in speech therapy.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
Hearing Aid Prescription, and Speech Therapy
Does Your Child Need Speech Therapy?
During a parent-teacher conference, your child’s teacher expressed concern about his language skills, an observation that you have also noticed at home. Due to your concerns, you bring your child for an evaluation with a certified speech language pathologist.
But will your child actually need speech therapy? Well, it depends, on the findings but here’s a speech therapy guide that will get you started on the right foot.
Reasons for Speech Therapy
First off, we want to emphasize that you and your child aren’t at fault for whatever speech-related issues he may have at present. The best thing to do is to accept the issue, seek professional help, and support your child in his journey, among other things that responsible parents will do.
Children usually require speech therapy for a wide range of reasons including but not limited to cognitive delays (e.g., intellectual development); hearing impairments; weak oral muscles; autism; congenital defects like cleft palate or cleft lip; motor planning issues; articulation problems; fluency disorders; feeding and swallowing disorders; respiratory disorders; and traumatic brain injury.
The speech language pathologist will determine the exact cause – or causes, which can happen in some cases – behind the speech issues. This is an important step in formulating the customized treatment plan for every child, a must since each case is unique. For example, your child may have autism so the speech therapy may also be made in conjunction with other treatments like occupational therapy.
There’s also the matter of effective treatment of the underlying medical condition wherein the speech issues are among its symptoms. If your child has a cleft palate, for example, surgery to resolve it will likely be necessary before speech therapy can be successful.
Early Intervention
If it’s recommended by a licensed health professional, speech therapy should begin as soon as possible. Studies have shown that early intervention – before the child is five years old, specifically – provide better outcomes.
But it doesn’t mean either than older children won’t make progress – they may progress at a slower rate but they will likely show significant improvements over time. The slower rate of progress can partly be attributed to the presence of learned patterns that they have to change during speech therapy.
Your child’s speech therapist will use a wide range of tools and techniques to address his speech difficulties. Depending on the method used, your child may be involved in one-on-one sessions and/or in small group sessions with the speech therapist. You may or may not be allowed in these sessions although you will be updated about your child’s progress and be provided with exercises to be done at home. If you think your child need a speech therapy, please contact us at 3100 0555 for further consulation. HK Hearing & Speech Center is a specialist in speech therapy.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
Hearing Aid Prescription, and Speech Therapy
These Aren’t Bells And Whistles On Hearing Aids!
Basic hearing aids and cochlear implants are, of course, still useful in better hearing for hearing-impaired individuals. But modern hearing aid technology provides them with more features that give them more control over what they hear, when they hear it, and how loud they hear it! Yes, these features may initially seem like bells and whistles, especially since these add to the cost, but these are crucial in better hearing.
Directional Microphones
Background noise is among the biggest hurdles that hearing-impaired people deal with on a daily basis, said noise of which can include crackles, hisses and buzz resembling tinnitus. While it’s harmless, it can drown out the sounds that you want to hear like your family and friends’ conversations, music, and incoming traffic.
The problem, fortunately, can be solved with directional microphones that work in two
complementary ways. First, these pick up and amplify sound from a single direction; and second, these filter out background noise. You will then hear more of the primary sounds you want to hear and less of the ambient noise.
Most modern hearing aids have built-in directional microphones. Many of these have an automatic feature, too, that allows them to pick up sound from one direction (e.g., conversations) or from several directions (e.g., music).
Personal Sound Amplifiers
These are popular because of their cheaper prices and non-regulated status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Think of them as the auditory counterpart of over-the-counter reading glasses – you don’t need hearing aids prescription to buy them!
Basically, personal sound amplifiers are like hearing aids except that these can be quite powerful and loud. While these can improve hearing for hearing-impaired people, these can also be quite harmful because of the potential damage to the ears.
If you have hearing difficulties, you should go to your doctor or consult with an audiologist first so that the treatment can be customized to your needs.
Hearing Loops and Telecoils
While conventional hearing aids are useful in face-to-face conversations, these can be less useful in larger settings like airports, theaters and stadiums. This is where hearing loops and telecoils come in. In a loop system, one or more microphones are connected to an amplifier and a wire loop, the latter of which sends sounds via electromagnetic waves. The sound signals are picked up by your hearing aid – or in some cases, by a telecoil, a cochlear implant – that allows amplification of sound. You can hear the sounds clearly that you will forget you ever have hearing issues!
With the connected society we have now, even hearing aids are connected to smartphones, tablets and computers. The connection typically comes via Bluetooth technology that links your hearing aids to your devices so you can hear music, make phone calls, and listen to Waze directions, among others.
We are specialist of hearing test & assessment, hearing aid prescription, and subsequent professional hearing aid services. Please contact us at 3100 0555 for free consulation.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription
What Caused Your Hearing Loss?
Do you feel like you’re hearing external sounds less and less? Do you feel like there have been significant changes in your hearing capacity? If you answered yes to these questions, then you may have hearing loss.
We must emphasize, however, that you shouldn’t self-diagnose, much less use suspicious products including supplements, tools and devices that promise to restore your hearing capacity to its previous level. You have to make an appointment with your doctor so that the appropriate medical and auditory examinations can be made.
But it doesn’t hurt either to know these causes of hearing loss either! You will then be able to make more sense of your hearing aids prescription with the information. Keep in mind that these are just a few of the numerous causes of hearing loss – ask your doctor for more information.
Congenital Hearing Loss
Sadly, some children have congenital hearing loss, a condition that often runs in families although it can also occur due to an infection during pregnancy or with maternal diabetes.
Other causes include premature birth, neonatal jaundice, and birth-related trauma like oxygen deprivation.
Childhood Illness
Children have sensitive ears and even a seemingly simple infection can affect their hearing
capacity. Ear infections are the common cause for hearing loss in children – these cause fluid buildup in the middle ear although it usually clears up after treatment.
Many common childhood diseases can also cause hearing loss, especially when these aren’t
promptly and properly treated. These include encephalitis, chickenpox, measles, influenza,
mumps, and meningitis; most of these diseases can be prevented with vaccines so be sure to ask your children’s pediatricians about them.
Age
Many, if not most, older people experience hearing loss as a natural part of aging. Unfortunately, it’s a common occurrence even when you have protected your ears as best as you can. The hearing loss isn’t your fault – it’s caused by the progressive loss of the hair cells in your inner ear. You can’t prevent it but you can ask an audiologist for assistance on hearing aids and therapy.
Tumors and Growths
When there’s something blocking your ear canal, you will experience hearing loss. The blockage can be a growth, such as a tumor (e.g., benign polyps or cancer), the removal of which may or may not relieve hearing loss. Even earwax buildup can cause temporary hearing loss.
Exposure to Loud Noises
Long-term exposure and short-term yet severe exposure to loud noises can result in profound hearing loss. The noise itself can be from machinery at work, from motorcycles and vehicles, and from speakers during concerts and fireworks.
Your doctor will customize your hearing aids and therapy, among other treatment options, based on what caused your hearing loss in the first place. But for now, take good care of your ears!
Although it is tempting to buy something cheaper and affordable on the Internet, you have to be aware that you might be losing some professional services such as hearing test & assessment from an audiologist, hearing aid adjustment orientation to fit your ear and hearing diagnosis, and hearing aid rehabilitation services, etc. These services are necessary to help you achieve quality hearing health care and the fullest benefit you can get from a hearing aid.
If you think you need a hearing aid, we are a specialist offering hearing test & assessment, hearing aid prescription and professional services.
Source:
HK Hearing & Speech Centre
Specialist of Hearing test & assessment,
and Hearing Aid Prescription