Video Game Rehabilitation of Velopharyngeal Dysfunction: A Case Series

• Published in: Journal of speech, language, and hearing research language, and hearing research, 2017-06, Vol.60 (6S), p.1800-1809
• Main Authors: Cler, Gabriel J, Mittelman, Talia, Braden, Maia N, Woodnorth, Geralyn Harvey, Stepp, Cara E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Accelerometers; Accelerometry; Acoustics; Adolescent; Algorithms; Auditory Perception; Biofeedback; Biofeedback, Psychology; Care and treatment; Child; Child, Preschool; Children; Computer & video games; Disorders; Etiology; Feasibility Studies; Feedback; Hearing Impairments; Humans; Interactive Video; Listening Comprehension; Male; Males; Methods; Microphones; Nasalization; Otolaryngology; Outcomes of Treatment; Parents; Patient Compliance; Patient Satisfaction; Rehabilitation; Rehabilitation Programs; Second Languages; Severity of Illness Index; Special Issue: Selected Papers From the 2016 Conference on Motor Speech—Basic and Clinical Science and Technology; Speech; Speech disorders; Speech Disorders - etiology; Speech Disorders - rehabilitation; Speech Language Pathology; Speech perception; Speech Therapy; Technology application; Therapy, Computer-Assisted; Velopharyngeal insufficiency; Velopharyngeal Insufficiency - complications; Velopharyngeal Insufficiency - rehabilitation; Video Games; Voice Disorders
• ISSN: 1092-4388; 1558-9102
• DOI: 10.1044/2017_jslhr-s-16-0231

Video games provide a promising platform for rehabilitation of speech disorders. Although video games have been used to train speech perception in foreign language learners and have been proposed for aural rehabilitation, their use in speech therapy has been limited thus far. We present feasibility results from at-home use in a case series of children with velopharyngeal dysfunction (VPD) using an interactive video game that provided real-time biofeedback to facilitate appropriate nasalization. Five participants were recruited across a range of ages, VPD severities, and VPD etiologies. Participants completed multiple weeks of individual game play with a video game that provides feedback on nasalization measured via nasal accelerometry. Nasalization was assessed before and after training by using nasometry, aerodynamic measures, and expert perceptual judgments. Four participants used the game at home or school, with the remaining participant unwilling to have the nasal accelerometer secured to his nasal skin, perhaps due to his young age. The remaining participants showed a tendency toward decreased nasalization after training, particularly for the words explicitly trained in the video game. Results suggest that video game-based systems may provide a useful rehabilitation platform for providing real-time feedback of speech nasalization in VPD. https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.5116828.