Treatment Intensity - Apraxia of Speech

VA Office of Research and Development

Status: Completed

Conditions: Apraxia of Speech; CVA; Aphasia

Treatments: Behavioral: Sound Production Treatment (SPT)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other U.S. Federal agency

Identifiers

NCT02332915

C1782-R

Details and patient eligibility

About

A growing neurorehabilitation literature suggests that intense treatment may be desired to maximize the effects of therapy following neurologic injury. This investigation is designed to facilitate the development of efficacious, clinically applicable treatment for acquired apraxia of speech by examining the effects of intensity of treatment (e.g., 9 hours per week vs. 3 hours per week, while holding total number of sessions constant) with a group of speakers who have chronic apraxia of speech and aphasia.

Full description

This research was designed to examine the effects of treatment intensity on outcomes associated with an established treatment for acquired apraxia of speech (AOS). Intensity in the form of dose frequency and total intervention duration was evaluated with Sound Production Treatment (SPT). The investigators examined the effects of intense dose frequency (nine, one-hour sessions per week) and traditional dose frequency (three, one hour sessions per week). Total number of treatment sessions was held constant allowing for comparison of total intervention duration (27 sessions over 3 weeks versus 27 sessions over 9 weeks). A two-phase, group cross-over design was used. Thirty-six participants with chronic aphasia and AOS were recruited. Twenty-four participants completed then entire study and were quasi-randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups - intense first or traditional first (12 per group). One group received SPT applied with intense dose frequency (SPT-I) followed by SPT applied with traditional dose frequency (SPT-T). The other group received the treatments in the reverse order (SPT-T followed by SPT-I). A two week no treatment interval separated the treatment phases. The outcomes of interest addressed changes in trained and untrained speech behaviors.

Enrollment: 36 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 21 to 90 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Veterans and non Veterans
• Males or females
• Stroke survivor who is at least 4 months post-stroke
• Speaker of English since childhood
• Ability to pass a pure-tone hearing screening (aided or unaided)
• currently non-hospitalized
• Age 21 to 90 years

Exclusion criteria

• neurological condition other than stroke
• currently clinically depressed
• history of speech/language problems prior to stroke
• untreated psychopathology

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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36 participants in 2 patient groups

SPT - Intense First

Experimental group

Description:

Participants will receive intense application in the first phase of treatment, followed by the non intense application of treatment.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Sound Production Treatment (SPT)

SPT - Traditional First

Experimental group

Description:

Participants will receive non intense, "traditional" application of treatment in the first phase of treatment, followed by the intense application of treatment.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Sound Production Treatment (SPT)