# Multimodal Neuroimaging Distinguishes Developmental and Disordered Phenotypes in Speech Sound Disorders

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI · 2020 · $201,333

## Abstract

SUMMARY
The development of speech production is a complex process that depends on auditory,
somatosensory, motor, and phonological (representational) systems in the brain. Impairment in
any of these systems could result in errors of speech sound production and have long term
consequences not only for speech development but language, literacy, and social-emotional
development. Current clinical practice for diagnosis of speech sound disorders (SSDs) and
assessment of their severity focuses on the phoneme-level accuracy of a child’s speech
production, often based on single word standardized assessment. However, longitudinal
studies have shown that measures of phoneme production accuracy alone are insufficient to
adequately characterize SSDs. Specifically, children who make persistent “developmental”
speech errors (error types considered to be typical errors in younger children) are more likely to
demonstrate a resolution to their SSD compared to those who make more atypical errors,
inconsistent errors, or distortion of sounds (termed “disordered” errors). In this project, we will
use multimodal neuroimaging (functional magnetic resonance imaging, structural analysis, and
magnetoencephalography) to assess engagement of a priori auditory, somatosensory, speech
motor and phonological networks in 5-year-old children with SSDs who make predominately
“developmental” speech errors, children who make predominately “disordered” speech errors,
age- gender-matched typically developing (TD) controls, and a cohort of younger TD controls.
We expect that “developmental” errors will be associated with functional and structural
immaturity in brain mechanisms supporting phonological processing. In contrast, “disordered”
errors will be associated with functional and structural abnormalities in phonological processing
regions, along with disrupted connectivity between these regions and brain mechanisms for
auditory perception, and somatosensory-motor function. The results of these studies will provide
a foundation by which to clearly differentiate the brain mechanisms underlying speech sound
disorders and provide a foundation on which to build for future intervention studies targeting the
specific networks in which deficits are identified.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9896803
- **Project number:** 5R21DC017393-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CINCINNATI
- **Principal Investigator:** JENNIFER J. VANNEST
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $201,333
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-04-01 → 2023-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9896803

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9896803, Multimodal Neuroimaging Distinguishes Developmental and Disordered Phenotypes in Speech Sound Disorders (5R21DC017393-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9896803. Licensed CC0.

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