McHenry, M.A., Wilson, R.L., & Minton, J.T. (1994). Management of multiple physiologic system deficits following traumatic brain injury. Journal of Medical Speech-Language Pathology, 2(1), 59-74. Type of Study Case Study Subjects 18 year old female Diagnoses Severe traumatic brain injury Speech Condition Dysphagia management Reduced loudness and weak articulatory and respiratory muscles Maximal use of AAC device  Dysarthria Palatal lift Purpose To illustrate the benefit of objective physiologic assessments to document speech change during recovery from TBI.  Methods Motor speech, oral peripheral structures, speech breathing, laryngeal resistance, velopharyngeal function, articulatory force, and intelligibility were evaluated.  Results Palatal lift conserved respiratory effort, vocal fold function, and facilitated plosive production.   Increased inspiratory muscle strength allowed for efficient speech breathing.  Laryngeal resistance was within normal limits post-discharge.  With final adjustments to the palatal lift, velopharyngeal resistance was half that of normal but nasalance was within normal limits.  Articulation improved over the course of treatment and was considered normal three months post-discharge.  The subjest's intelligibility was rated to be 99.5% during the final evaluation (3 months pot-discharge).  Treatment Implications The palatal lift's effectiveness increased over time.  The lift improved the function of more than one speech system.  Increased muscle strength in both articulatory and respiratory systems had an impact on overall improvement of the systems.  Integrating all physiologic components in speech therapy is crucial to improving overall speech production.    Assessment Treatment Speech Characteristics Books and Book Chapters Instruments Other Links Search Home   To return to the Abstract References, click on Assessment, Treatment, or Speech Characteristics or use your browser to go Back.