Speech Rate Treatments for Individuals with Dysarthria: A Tutorial

Research confirms the long-standing clinical observation that patients with dysarthria exhibit variability in speech rate. Thus, modifying speech rate has been documented as one of the best treatment options for these patients. In this tutorial, several published rate control interventions for dysarthric speakers are presented. Studies discussed utilized various interventions, including pacing boards, alphabet board supplementation, visual and auditory feedback, cueing and pacing strategies, and delayed auditory feedback. Interventions discussed represent a hierarchy from “rigid” strategies, which impose maximal rate control, to techniques allowing for greater speech naturalness and independent rate control. All procedures are examined with respect to effectiveness in reducing rate, effect on intelligibility and prosody, training requirements, specific alterations made to speech rate, and other relevant aspects.