Fluency Disorders
What are fluency disorders?
Fluency disorders affect the natural flow of speech. The best known fluency disorder is "stuttering." It begins during childhood and, in some cases, persists throughout life. The disorder is characterized by disruptions in the production of speech sounds.
Stuttered speech often includes repetitions of word parts or whole words, as well as prolongations of speech sounds. At times, the flow of speech may become completely stopped or blocked. Some speakers who stutter exhibit excessive physical tension in the speech musculature.
Another type of fluency disorder is “cluttering.” This disorder is identified by very fast and slurred speech with reduced intelligibility. Other dysfluencies may have a neurological or psychological origin.
How can the UCF Communication Disorders Clinic help?
The UCF Communication Disorders Clinic offers services designed to assist speakers who exhibit stuttering, cluttering or other fluency disorders. The clinic’s speech-language pathologists (SLPs) use self-report tests as well as observational data to aid in making appropriate diagnostic decisions. These diagnostic decisions lead to the recommendation of a treatment program that is unique for each individual. Clinicians responsible for fluency evaluations and treatment have specialized credentials; one is an American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Board Recognized Fluency Specialist.
What is the evaluation procedure at the UCF Communication Disorders Clinic?
The evaluation consists of two parts. During the first part, the SLP administers a number of self-report tests (questionnaires). The second part consists of obtaining different speech samples that will allow the clinician to determine the number and types of dysfluencies (breaks in speech) as well as the ways in which the speaker reacts to and copes with the speech disorder. An interview follows the speech tasks.
It is helpful for clients who have received speech and/or language evaluations or treatment in the past to provide the clinic with any reports. This assists in determining whether additional assessments need to be completed.
In addition, clients should send any relevant medical or psychological reports as well as IEP school records. Diagnostic decisions lead to a recommendations for treatment, if warranted.
Please click on the appropriate link below to complete a case history form. The completed form can be faxed or mailed to the UCF Communication Disorders Clinic (see Contact Us). It cannot be sent back electronically due to privacy issues.
What type of treatment is provided at the UCF Communication Disorders Clinic?
Stuttering is a complex disorder. A multi-modal approach is used to bring about behavioral changes needed to achieve improvement that will be maintained with continued practice.
The speaker will be engaged in activities designed to help “demystify” stuttering. He/she will learn to identify personal behaviors, difficult speaking situations, as well as attitudes and emotions associated with stuttering. Incorporated into the program are activities to modify the stuttering and enhance fluency. Specific emphasis is placed on carry-over from clinic to real-life experiences as well as maintenance of fluency.
Orlando Chapter of the National Stuttering Association
Martine Vanryckeghem, professor of communication sciences and disorders at UCF, is the chair of the National Stuttering Association Orlando Chapter support group. The group meets every second Wednesday of the month in the Communication Disorders Clinic Conference Room in the Research Pavilion, Suite 155, from 7 to 8/8:30 p.m.
Visit the National Stuttering Association's Web site at
www.nsastutter.org.
For further information on fluency disorders, also visit:
American Speech-Language Hearing Association
International Fluency Association
ASHA Board Recognized Fluency Specialists
Stuttering Foundation of America – The Stuttering Foundation provides free online resources, services and support to those who stutter and their families, as well as support for research into the causes of stuttering.
FRIENDS – National Association of Young People Who Stutter –FRIENDS is a national organization created to provide a network of love and support for children and teenagers who stutter, their families, and the professionals who work with them.
Stuttering Homepage
“Dedicated to providing information about stuttering for both consumers and professionals who work with people who stutter. It includes information about research, therapy, support organizations, and conferences and other events....”
Professor Vanryckeghem is also a clinical supervisor in the Fluency Disorders Clinic and an ASHA Board Recognized Fluency Specialist.
For further information about her, visit: http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~martine2/
Please click on Research and Partnerships for an abbreviated list of recent publications and research initiatives related to fluency disorders conducted at the UCF Communication Disorders Clinic.
Video
To view a video aired on UCFTV:
1. Click on the image below
2. Select the topic “Speech and Fluency Disorders ”
3. Click on the link and go to the 03:09 minute mark
 |
Professor Martine Vanryckeghem discusses speech and fluency disorders on the "For Your Health" show. |
Radio
Click on the link below for a radio Interview of Professor Vanryckeghem on MSHARadio, a broadcast of the Mississippi Speech-Language Hearing Association.
Radio
Host: Ricky Burk
Topic:
Behavior Assessment for School-age Children Who Stutter by Martine Vanryckeghem and Gene J. Brutten
Professor Vanryckeghem on MSHARadio
Print
Read about Professor Vanryckeghem’s research on p. 3 of the Spring 2008 issue of Communiqué, the biannual newsletter of the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. |
