This study reports tongue-palate contact recorded using electropalatography (EPG) during five vowels /i/, /Θ/, /I/, /o/ and / / spoken by school-aged children with cleft palate and a group of normal speakers. All the children had articulation disorders affecting consonants but none had obvious vowel errors. Two measures were taken from the EPG data at the temporal midpoint of the vowels. The first identified the percentage of vowels produced with complete coronal constriction and the second calculated amount of contact. The results showed that children with cleft palate frequently produced the high vowel /i/ with complete constriction, with 40% of /i/ targets articulated in this way. There were lower percentages for /Θ/ and /I/ and no complete constrictions during the lower vowels /o/ and / /. None of the normal speakers produced any vowels with complete constriction. In terms of amount of contact, the vowels ranked /i/ > /Θ/ > /I/ > /o/ > / /, with /i/ having the most and / / the least contact. Although this ranking held for both groups, the cleft group had more contact than normal speakers, especially during high vowels. Complete constriction is viewed as a clinically relevant phenomenon that blocks oral airflow and as a result increases nasal airflow during vowels.

Keywords:
Electropalatography, Cleft palate, Articulation disorders, Vowels
This content is only available via PDF.
© 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel
2005
Copyright / Drug Dosage / Disclaimer
Copyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug.
Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.
You do not currently have access to this content.