Velopharyngeal Function During Oral Sound Production in Healthy Children

描述（由申请人提供）：前咽是言语产生机制的关键组成部分。当成年人说话时，前咽大部分时间是关闭的，特别是在口（非鼻）音产生期间。相比之下，当非常年幼的婴儿发出声音时，前咽通常是开放的。令人惊讶的是，长喙龙持续关闭发声的年龄仍然未知。本申请中提出的研究旨在纵向随访健康儿童，直至观察到一致的咽闭合。它将解决以下具体目标：（a）确定年龄时，咽喉闭合发生一致的口音生产;（B）确定语音，语言，和/或运动变量是否有助于解释差异的咽喉功能在口音生产的内部和之间的儿童。本研究将纳入60名儿童（男孩和女孩数量相等），从4个月大开始，每月进行一次观察，直到连续3个月观察到一致的闭合。将使用非侵入性空气力学方法（在我们实验室开发）确定前咽的状态（开放与闭合），该方法涉及监测与声学信号相关的鼻气压。发声/言语将使用玩具，面部表情，图画书，模仿和口头探针，这取决于孩子的年龄。反映孩子的语音库，表达和接受语言技能，和运动发育的措施也将在每个会话期间获得，并将用于帮助解释任何不占年龄的变化。这项研究的结果将回答一个问题，这是基本的理解正常的语言发展（“在什么年龄时，前咽部关闭一致的口腔声音的产生？").通过这样做，它也将为未来对有咽功能障碍风险的婴儿（如已知或疑似神经运动障碍的婴儿）的研究奠定基础，并最终应用于此类婴儿的临床评估和管理。 公共卫生相关性：当成年人说话时，鼻子的后部与嘴（除了像“m”这样的鼻音）是由喉咙后部的一个阀门关闭的，称为“前咽”，而当非常年幼的婴儿发出声音时，他们通常会让前咽打开。这项研究将确定婴儿（或幼儿）何时学会关闭前咽部以产生语音。这对于理解正常的语言发育很重要，但更重要的是，能够识别发育异常的婴儿，以便为他们提供早期治疗。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The velopharynx is a critical component of the speech production mechanism. When adults speak, the velopharynx is closed most of the time, especially during oral (nonnasal) sound production. In contrast, when very young infants produced sound, the velopharynx is usually open. Surprisingly, the age at which the velopharynx closes consistently for oral sound production is still not known. The study proposed in this application is designed to follow healthy children longitudinally until consistent velopharyngeal closure is observed. It will address the following specific aims: (a) to determine the age at which velopharyngeal closure occurs consistently for oral sound production; and (b) to determine if phonetic, linguistic, and/or motor variables help to explain differences in velopharyngeal function during oral sound production within and among children. The study will include 60 children (equal numbers of boys and girls), beginning at age 4 months, with observations being made monthly until consistent closure is observed for 3 consecutive months. The status of the velopharynx (open vs closed) will be determined using a noninvasive aeromechanical approach (developed in our laboratory) that involves the monitoring of nasal air pressure in relation to the acoustic signal. Vocalizations/speech will be elicited using toys, facial expressions, picture books, imitation, and verbal probes, depending on the age of the child at the time. Measures reflecting the child's phonetic repertoire, expressive and receptive language skills, and motor development will also be obtained during each session, and will be used to help explain any variability not accounted for by age. The results of this study will answer a question that is fundamental to the understanding of normal speech development ("At what age does the velopharynx close consistently for oral sound production?"). By doing so, it will also lay the groundwork for future research on infants who are at risk for impairment of velopharyngeal function, such as those with known or suspected neuromotor disorders, and for eventual application to clinical evaluation and management of such infants. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: When adults speak, the back of the nose is closed off from the mouth (except for nasal sounds like 'm') by a valve in the back of the throat called the velopharynx, whereas when very young infants make sounds, they usually leave the velopharynx open. This study will determine when the infant (or young child) learns to close the velopharynx for speech production. This is important to understanding normal speech development, but more importantly, it is critical to being able to identify infants who are developing abnormally so that they can be offered early treatment.