12 Nov Treatment for Childhood Apraxia of Speech Past, Present, and Future
Summary by Edwin Maas, PhD
In recent years, there has been an increase in treatment research for children with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS). This paper takes stock of the current state of the evidence base by providing a ‘bird’s eye view’ of the literature and suggestions for future directions. The paper begins with an introduction of basic concepts of clinical trials (treatment) research, and then discusses evidence and future directions organized by four fundamental treatment questions: (1) Does Treatment X work?, (2) Does Treatment X work better than Treatment Y?, (3) For whom does Treatment X work?, and (4) What does ‘work’ mean, anyway?. The review reveals that there are several treatment approaches that can improve speech production in children with CAS. Research designs are becoming more rigorous, and research is also emerging that compares different treatments or different versions of treatments. At the same time, several important gaps in the evidence base were noted, in particular with respect to treatment candidacy (which children are most likely to benefit from a certain treatment and which children have been studied in the literature to date) and outcomes beyond speech accuracy, such as intelligibility, communicative participation, and psychosocial well-being. Suggestions for future research are offered, and the concept of a hypothesized pathway is applied to CAS to help guide development and refinement of treatments in order to maximize overall outcomes for children with CAS and their families.
Maas, E. (2024). Treatment for childhood apraxia of speech (CAS): Past, present, and future. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 67(9S). 3495-3520. https://doi.org/10.1044/2024_JSLHR-23-00233
Summary by Edwin Maas, PhD
In recent years, there has been an increase in treatment research for children with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS). This paper takes stock of the current state of the evidence base by providing a ‘bird’s eye view’ of the literature and suggestions for future directions. The paper begins with an introduction of basic concepts of clinical trials (treatment) research, and then discusses evidence and future directions organized by four fundamental treatment questions: (1) Does Treatment X work?, (2) Does Treatment X work better than Treatment Y?, (3) For whom does Treatment X work?, and (4) What does ‘work’ mean, anyway?. The review reveals that there are several treatment approaches that can improve speech production in children with CAS. Research designs are becoming more rigorous, and research is also emerging that compares different treatments or different versions of treatments. At the same time, several important gaps in the evidence base were noted, in particular with respect to treatment candidacy (which children are most likely to benefit from a certain treatment and which children have been studied in the literature to date) and outcomes beyond speech accuracy, such as intelligibility, communicative participation, and psychosocial well-being. Suggestions for future research are offered, and the concept of a hypothesized pathway is applied to CAS to help guide development and refinement of treatments in order to maximize overall outcomes for children with CAS and their families.
Maas, E. (2024). Treatment for childhood apraxia of speech (CAS): Past, present, and future. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 67(9S). 3495-3520. https://doi.org/10.1044/2024_JSLHR-23-00233
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