A preliminary study of nasal airway patency and its potential effect on speech performance

The relationship between nasal airway size and articulatory performance was studied in a group of cleft palate patients. Articulation analysis revealed that children with bilateral cleft lip and palate were nearly twice as likely to manifest compensatory articulations as children with unilateral cleft lip and palate or with cleft palate only. When subjects were grouped according to speech performance, aerodynamic assessment indicated that children with compensatory articulations had significantly larger nasal cross-sectional areas than children without compensatory articulations. The findings suggest that children with comparatively large nasal airways may be at increased risk for developing abnormal speech patterns. If these findings are confirmed by further research, such children may be candidates for relatively early palate repair.