Speech fluency profile in Williams-Beuren syndrome: a preliminary study

Area of Science:

• Linguistics
• Neurodevelopmental Disorders
• Speech Pathology

Background:

• Williams-Beuren syndrome (WBS) is associated with phonological loop effectiveness but also speech disruptions.
• Lexical and semantic deficits are implicated in WBS speech disruptions, though not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the speech fluency profile in individuals with WBS.
• To compare speech performance in WBS individuals against a matched control group.

Main Methods:

• Evaluated 12 individuals with WBS (age 6.6-23.6 years, mental age 4.8-14.3 years).
• Compared WBS group to 12 controls matched for mental age and without speech/learning difficulties.
• Assessed speech fluency using the ABFW Language Test, focusing on disruptions and speech rate.

Main Results:

• WBS group demonstrated a higher percentage of speech discontinuity.
• Increased frequency of common hesitations and word repetitions observed in the WBS group.
• Significant differences in speech fluency parameters between WBS and control groups.

Conclusions:

• WBS speech fluency profile suggests disfluencies linked to lexical, semantic, and syntactic processing deficits.
• Further systematic research is recommended to fully elucidate WBS speech characteristics.