[What are management practices for speech therapy in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis?]

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis involves deterioration of speech and swallowing. The objectives of rehabilitation are to maintain a comprehensible speech, using exercises on airflow-phonic coordination and breath, lingual and labial movements. Rehabilitation exercises also focus on the different times of swallowing to improve management of the food bolus in the mouth, to learn facilitating techniques and to adopt postures favoring passage of the food bolus. No studies have addressed the question of the effectiveness of rehabilitation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, in term of quality of life, maintenance of comprehensible speech or reduction of respiratory risks. Rehabilitation programs are established on an individual basis according to the clinical presentation and course.