Treatment Intensity - Apraxia of Speech

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.