Telepractice Treatment of Stuttering: A Systematic Review

The purpose of the current systematic review is to (1) guide and inform speech language pathologists involved in the treatment of persons who stutter in the development and implementation of live-stream, video telepractice services and (2) identify areas for future research related to telepractice and stuttering. Systematic searches of electronic databases, reference lists and journals identified seven studies that met predetermined inclusion criteria. These seven studies were analyzed and summarized in terms of the: (1) sample size, (2) characteristics of the participants, (3) technology and equipment utilized, (4) clinical setting, (5) treatment type, (6) research methodology, (7) results of the study, and (8) Oxford evidence-based practice levels. Telepractice was used by university-based researchers and educators in the delivery of services to 80 participants who stutter. The services delivered included implementation of the Camperdown Program, the Lidcombe Program, and an integrated treatment approach. Live-stream, video telepractice appears to be a promising service- delivery method for treatment of stuttering using the Camperdown Program, Lidcombe Program, and integrated approaches. Further research is needed to determine if the initial evaluation and diagnosis of stuttering can be made using telepractice methodologies.