scholarly journals Speech movement variability in people who stutter: A vocal tract MRI study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlie E E Wiltshire ◽  
Mark Chiew ◽  
Jennifer Chesters ◽  
Mairead Healy ◽  
Kate E Watkins
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Movement Variability ◽  
Motor Systems ◽  
Fluent Speech ◽  
Trait Level ◽  
Mri Study ◽  
Phonological Complexity ◽  
Speech Motor

Purpose: People who stutter (PWS) have more unstable speech motor systems than people who are typically fluent (PWTF). Here, we used real-time MRI of the vocal tract to assess variability and duration of movements of different articulators in PWS and PWTF during fluent speech production.Method: The vocal tracts of 28 adults with moderate to severe stuttering and 20 PWTF were scanned using MRI while repeating simple and complex pseudowords. Mid-sagittal images of the vocal tract from lips to larynx were reconstructed at 33.3 frames per second. For each participant, we measured the variability and duration of movements across multiple repetitions of the pseudowords in three selected articulators: the lips, tongue body, and velum. Results: PWS showed significantly greater speech movement variability than PWTF during fluent repetitions of pseudowords. The group difference was most evident for measurements of lip aperture, as reported previously, but here we report that movements of the tongue body and velum were also affected during the same utterances. Variability was highest in both PWS and PWTF for repetitions of the monosyllabic pseudowords and was not affected by phonological complexity. Speech movement variability was unrelated to stuttering severity with the PWS group. PWS also showed longer speech movement durations relative to PWTF for fluent repetitions of multisyllabic pseudowords and this group difference was even more evident when repeating the phonologically complex pseudowords. Conclusions: Using real-time MRI of the vocal tract, we found that PWS produced more variable movements than PWTF even during fluent productions of simple pseudowords. This indicates general, trait-level differences in the control of the articulators between PWS and PWTF.

scholarly journals Speech Movement Variability in People Who Stutter: A Vocal Tract Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Charlotte E. E. Wiltshire ◽  
Mark Chiew ◽  
Jennifer Chesters ◽  
Máiréad P. Healy ◽  
Kate E. Watkins
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging ◽  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Imaging Study ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Movement Variability ◽  
Trait Level ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽  
Phonological Complexity

Purpose People who stutter (PWS) have more unstable speech motor systems than people who are typically fluent (PWTF). Here, we used real-time magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the vocal tract to assess variability and duration of movements of different articulators in PWS and PWTF during fluent speech production. Method The vocal tracts of 28 adults with moderate to severe stuttering and 20 PWTF were scanned using MRI while repeating simple and complex pseudowords. Midsagittal images of the vocal tract from lips to larynx were reconstructed at 33.3 frames per second. For each participant, we measured the variability and duration of movements across multiple repetitions of the pseudowords in three selected articulators: the lips, tongue body, and velum. Results PWS showed significantly greater speech movement variability than PWTF during fluent repetitions of pseudowords. The group difference was most evident for measurements of lip aperture using these stimuli, as reported previously, but here, we report that movements of the tongue body and velum were also affected during the same utterances. Variability was not affected by phonological complexity. Speech movement variability was unrelated to stuttering severity within the PWS group. PWS also showed longer speech movement durations relative to PWTF for fluent repetitions of multisyllabic pseudowords, and this group difference was even more evident as complexity increased. Conclusions Using real-time MRI of the vocal tract, we found that PWS produced more variable movements than PWTF even during fluent productions of simple pseudowords. PWS also took longer to produce multisyllabic words relative to PWTF, particularly when words were more complex. This indicates general, trait-level differences in the control of the articulators between PWS and PWTF. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14782092

Influence of L2 proficiency on speech movement variability: Production of prosodic contrasts by Bengali–English speakers

2011 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 489-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
RAHUL CHAKRABORTY
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Stress Pattern ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Movement Variability ◽  
L2 Proficiency ◽  
Motor Systems ◽  
Lip Movement ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Speech Motor ◽  
Novel Words

This paper examines the influence of age of immersion and proficiency in a second language on speech movement consistency in both a first and a second language. Ten monolingual speakers of English and 20 Bengali–English bilinguals (10 with low L2 proficiency and 10 with high L2 proficiency) participated. Lip movement variability was assessed based on bilingual participants’ production of four real and four novel words embedded in Bengali (L1) and English (L2) sentences. Lip movement variability was evaluated across L1 and L2 contexts for the production of real and novel words with trochaic and iambic stress pattern. Adult bilinguals produced equally consistent speech movement patterns in their production of L1 and L2 targets. Overall, speakers’ L2 proficiency did not influence their movement variability. Unlike children, the speech motor systems of adult L2 speakers exhibit a lack of flexibility which could contribute to their increased difficulties in acquiring native-like pronunciation in L2.

Vocal Tract in Female Registers—A Dynamic Real-Time MRI Study

2010 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthias Echternach ◽  
Johan Sundberg ◽  
Susan Arndt ◽  
Michael Markl ◽  
Martin Schumacher ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Mri Study

Characterizing Vocal Tract Dynamics Across Speakers Using Real-Time MRI

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanner Sorensen ◽  
Asterios Toutios ◽  
Louis Goldstein ◽  
Shrikanth S. Narayanan
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Vocal Tract

Clinical Assessment of Oropharyngeal Motor Development in Young Children

1987 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 271-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
JoAnne Robbins ◽  
Thomas Klee
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Application ◽  
Clinical Assessment ◽  
Motor Development ◽  
Structural Integrity ◽  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Developmental Change ◽  
Clinical Protocol ◽  
Motor Functioning ◽  
Motor Abilities ◽  
Speech Motor

A clinical protocol was developed for the purpose of assessing the oral and speech motor abilities of children. An 86-item test was administered to 90 normally developing children aged 2:6–6:11. Evaluations of the structural integrity of the vocal tract did not show developmental change, although evaluations of oral and speech motor functioning changed significantly with age. The functional portion of the protocol was most sensitive to developmental change up to age 3:6, with an asymptote in performance thereafter. Clinical application of the protocol is discussed.

Faster 3d vocal tract real-time MRI using constrained reconstruction

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yinghua Zhu ◽  
Asterios Toutios ◽  
Shrikanth Narayanan ◽  
Krishna Nayak
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Constrained Reconstruction

Orofacial Movements Associated With Fluent Speech in Persons Who Stutter

2004 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 294-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael D. McClean ◽  
Stephen M. Tasko ◽  
Charles M. Runyan
Keyword(s):  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Movement Speed ◽  
Speed Ratio ◽  
Electromagnetic System ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Lower Lip ◽  
Fluent Speech ◽  
Speed Increase ◽  
Speech Disfluency ◽  
Opening And Closing

This study was intended to replicate and extend previous findings that (a) during fluent speech persons who stutter (PS) and those who do not (NS) differ in their vocal tract closing movements (L. Max, A. J. Caruso, & V. L. Gracco, 2003) and (b) ratios relating lip and tongue speed to jaw speed increase with stuttering severity (M. D. McClean & C. R. Runyan, 2000). An electromagnetic system was used to record movements of the upper lip, lower lip, tongue, and jaw of 43 NS and 37 PS during productions of a nonsense phrase and a sentence. Measurement and analysis of movement speeds, durations, and ratios of lip and tongue speed to jaw speed were performed on fluent productions of a nonsense phrase and sentence. Statistical comparisons were made between PS with low and high stuttering severity levels (LPS and HPS) and NS. Significant variations across groups in movement speed and duration were observed, but the pattern of these effects was complex and did not replicate the results of the two earlier studies. In the nonsense phrase, significant reductions in lower lip closing duration, jaw closing duration, and jaw closing speed were seen in PS. In the sentence task, HPS showed elevated tongue opening and closing durations. For tongue opening in the sentence, LPS showed elevated speeds and HPS showed reduced speeds. The elevated speeds for LPS are interpreted as a contributing factor to speech disfluency, whereas the reduced speeds and increased durations in HPS are attributed to adaptive behavior intended to facilitate fluent speech. Significant group effects were not seen for the speed ratio measures. Results are discussed in relation to multivariate analyses intended to identify subgroups of PS.

scholarly journals Semi-automatic method for analysing vocal tract morphology from real-time magnetic resonance images

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michel Belyk ◽  
Christopher Carignan ◽  
Carolyn McGettigan
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Vocal Tract ◽  
Structural Features ◽  
Magnetic Resonance Images ◽  
Training Data ◽  
Surrounding Tissue ◽  
User Input ◽  
Internal Structures ◽  
Automated Processing

Real-time magnetic resonance imaging is a technique that provides high contrast videographic data of the vocal tract that allow researchers to observe the internal structures that shape the sounds of speech. However, structural features need to be extracted from these vocal tract images to make them useful to researchers. We have developed a semi-automated processing pipeline that produces outlines of the vocal tract to quantify vocal tract morphology. Our approach uses simple tissue classification constrained to pixels that analysts have identified as likely to contain the vocal tract and surrounding tissue. This approach is supplemented with multiple opportunities for the analyst to intervene in order to ensure that outputs are robust to errors. Although this approach is more labour intensive than more fully automated alternatives, these costs are offset by the benefits of improving the quality of measurements. We demonstrate that this pipeline can be generalised to a range of datasets and that it remains reliable across analysts, particularly among analysts with vocal tract expertise. The pipeline’s reliance on user input presents a challenge to scalability if applied to very large. Measurements produced by this pipeline could be provide a broader scope of training data for fully automated methods in an effort to improve their generalisability.

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