How Do Nasopharyngoscopy Ratings of Sustained Speech Differ From Connected Speech?

Area of Science:

• Speech-Language Pathology
• Otolaryngology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI) affects speech clarity and resonance.
• Nasopharyngoscopy is a key diagnostic tool for evaluating velopharyngeal closure.
• Assessing velopharyngeal function during connected speech can be challenging.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the correlation between velopharyngeal closure ratings during connected speech and sustained speech (/i/ or /s/) via nasopharyngoscopy.
• To quantify differences in velopharyngeal closure parameters between connected and sustained speech assessments.
• To evaluate the consistency of velopharyngeal closure patterns across speech tasks.

Main Methods:

• A prospective observational study involving 52 participants with VPI.
• Nasopharyngoscopy was performed during both connected speech and sustained /i/ or /s/ phonation.
• Velopharyngeal closure percentage, velar movement, lateral pharyngeal wall movement, and closure patterns were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Moderate to very strong correlations were found between connected speech and sustained /i/ for closure percentage, velar movement, and lateral pharyngeal wall movement (P < .01).
• Similar strong correlations were observed between connected speech and sustained /s/.
• Mean differences in closure percentage between connected and sustained speech were small (2%-12%), and closure patterns matched in 90-95% of cases.

Conclusions:

• Nasopharyngoscopic ratings of velopharyngeal movement are highly consistent between connected speech and sustained /i/ or /s/.
• Eliciting sustained /i/ or /s/ alone may be sufficient for velopharyngeal function assessment when connected speech is not possible.
• This finding can streamline nasopharyngoscopy procedures for VPI evaluation.