Member Contribution: Pat Taylor, M.ED.,SLP, COM
QUESTION:
Can you give me information about treating a client for articulation disorders concurrently as she receives oral myofunctional therapy?
REPLY:
You have asked a very appropriate question. In my opinion, you can treat for articulation disorders concurrently with orofacial myofunctional (OM) therapy, however, it may be redundant. Differential diagnosis for articulation disorders is a difficult process, especially when attempting to identify the underlying cause. If the underlying cause is an orofacial myofunctional problem, articulation disorders often spontaneously self-correct when appropriate orofacial myofunctional habits and postures are established and habituated. If the articulation disorder does not entirely correct by the time the OM therapy is completed, it usually requires only minimum direct articulation therapy. However, if the OM disorder is misdiagnosed or confounded by additional factors, such as sensori-neural integration deficits, apraxia, etc, then the length of time for articulation therapy may be extended. As both an orofacial myologist and a speech therapist, there are some clients for whom I do integrate both OM and artic therapy (some sound combinations may be used as an OM exercise depending on the individual client - ie the words cut and tuck). However, if one person was providing the OM therapy and another was providing the articulation therapy, my preference would be for the client to complete the OM therapy first, or at least get to the habituation stage prior to implementing articulation therapy.