# The Impact of Individual-Level Factors on Progress in Speech Therapy for Children with Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS)

> **NIH NIH F31** · TEMPLE UNIV OF THE COMMONWEALTH · 2021 · $34,466

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) is a pediatric motor speech disorder that impairs the planning and
coordination of movement sequences required to produce understandable speech, affecting 40,000 to 400,000
children in the US. Children with CAS typically make slow progress in therapy and require treatment exceeding
the intensity and duration prescribed for other speech disorders. Due to the potential adverse academic, social-
emotional, and vocational consequences of communication disorders, effective and efficient treatment is
critical for children with CAS. To date, investigations have focused solely on the impact of treatment-level
factors (e.g., practice schedule, frequency of feedback, target complexity) on treatment outcome. However,
these primarily single-case investigations have not fully accounted for the variability seen in treatment
outcomes. Individual-level factors (e.g., initial severity, error consistency, perceptual ability) are frequently
hypothesized to be key differentiators in treatment response, but there have been no systematic investigations
of these factors.
Guided by theoretical understanding about the nature of CAS and supported by empirical and clinical findings,
we have identified four individual-level baseline factors which may facilitate or impede response to treatment
for CAS: (1) severity in terms of number of errors, (2) severity in terms of consistency of errors, (3) perceptual
ability, and (4) intelligibility. We will examine 40 children who previously participated in or are currently
participating in treatment for CAS (funded by R01 DC017768; PI: Maas; ClinicalTrials.gov ID NCT03903120),
and examine the relationship between the identified person-level factors and response to treatment as
captured by changes in speech accuracy. Results will elucidate possible CAS profiles and lay the groundwork
for development and implementation of maximally efficient targeted treatments for CAS.
This study will contribute critical insight into the impact of initial individual-level factors on treatment outcome,
using data from the largest randomized control trial for CAS treatment to date. This proposal fits with NIDCD's
Strategic Plan in that it aims to identify factors which contribute to success in treatment for an explicitly noted
understudied population (CAS). The long term goal of this research program is to maximize outcomes and
communicative quality of life for the many children with CAS and their families.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10085571
- **Project number:** 5F31DC018723-02
- **Recipient organization:** TEMPLE UNIV OF THE COMMONWEALTH
- **Principal Investigator:** Molly Beiting
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $34,466
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-01-13 → 2022-01-12

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10085571

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10085571, The Impact of Individual-Level Factors on Progress in Speech Therapy for Children with Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) (5F31DC018723-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10085571. Licensed CC0.

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