Frequently Asked Questions

What does a speech-language pathologist do?
A clinical speech-language pathologist conducts comprehensive evaluations and then formulates specific individualized goals based upon the testing results. These goals are then implemented in a speech-language therapy program.

What is the difference between speech and language disorders?
A language disorder is the inability to use words and their meanings properly. Children may exhibit inappropriate grammatical patterns, poor reading comprehension, poor decoding skills, difficulty with word retrieval or difficulty with the knowledge of the sound system. A language disorder can lead to a reading disability as well, and it is essential to realize the connection between language and reading development. A speech disorder is characterized by difficulty producing sounds (articulation), dysfluent speech, and voice difficulties.

What is tongue thrust?
(Oral myofunctional disorder)
Tongue thrusting is a way of swallowing. During a tongue thrust swallow, the tongue pushes against the front teeth or through the upper and lower teeth. Almost all infants swallow this way, but most children develop a "normal" swallowing pattern during early elementary years. The child must be taught to swallow a new way, with the tongue moving up and back in the mouth. We must retrain the muscles involved in swallowing.

What is dysfluency?
If your child has difficulty speaking and hesitates or repeats certain syllables, words, or phrases, he may have a speech dysfluency or stuttering problem. He may be just going through normal dysfluency that many children experience as they learn to speak. Contact a speech-language pathologist to determine if your child will benefit from therapy.

What is Hippotherapy?
Hippotherapy is a physical, occupational or speech therapy treatment strategy that utilizes equine movement. Hippotherapy is used as part of an integrated treatment program to achieve functional outcomes. Internationally, hippotherapy means "treatment with the help of the horse" and is derived from the Greek word "hippos", meaning horse. PT's, OT's, and SLP's in North America have integrated hippotherapy in medically necessary treatment sessions that have been prescribed by physicians in the United States since the 1970's. The horse's unmatched three-dimensional movement provides vestibular, proprioceptive, and tactile stimulation to enhance focus, attentions span, verbal output, postural strength and more.

What is Apraxia (Dyspraxia) of speech?
Apraxia refers to a disorder of the nervous system which is characterized by the inability to carry out purposeful movements. They have difficulty sequencing the necessary movements that are required for speech production. Speech may be incoherent and the child may be slow to learn to speak.

What is Earobics?
Earobics teaches phonological awareness skills that are necessary for reading and language development through a computer based program. It incorporates the full range of phonological awareness, auditory processing, phonic and language comprehension skills, all of which are necessary for language competence.

What is an auditory processing deficit?
An auditory deficit is when there is a breakdown in one or more of the following areas that are essential for learning.

Auditory attention - ability to maintain purposeful focus to sound.
Auditory discrimination - ability to tell if two sounds are the same or different.
Auditory Figure - Ground discrimination- ability to focus on sound in sequential order.
Auditory sequential memory - ability to remember sounds and words in sequential order.
Auditory synthesis - ability to blend sounds into syllables and syllables into words.
Sound-Symbol correspondence - ability to associate a sound with an alphabetic letter.
Rhyming and Phonological Awareness - ability to recognize sound patterns and to identify sounds and sound sequences with a word.

What does an occupational therapist do?
An occupational therapist provides for the development, improvement, or restoration of sensori-motor, oral motor, perceptual, neuromuscular, and/or psychosocial components of a child's performance. OT's focus on the child's performance within the areas of self-care, play or leisure, and schoolwork activities.

What are some areas that OT's address?

Balance and coordination
Fine and gross motor skills
Writing, pre-writing skills
Scissor skills
Dressing, buttoning, tying, etc.
Muscle strength and endurance
Bilateral integration
Body awareness
Sensory integration
Muscle tone
Posture
Motor planning
Attention
Cognitive skills
Perceptual skills
Hand-eye coordination

What is Sensory Integration?
Sensory Integration is both a neurological process and an approach or frame of reference for treating children with specific types of processing dysfunction. It is the organization of sensation for use.

What is Dysfunction in Sensory Integration?
Dysfunction in Sensory Integration (DSI) is inefficient processing of sensation. It is a neurological disorder in which the brain is unable to analyze, organize, and connect or integrate sensory messages. This results in "sensory seeking" or "sensory avoiding" patterns or dyspraxia, a motor planning problem.

What is treatment of DSI?
A child with DSI often displays difficulties with eating, dressing, school and or playing with friends. It is the job of the OT to provide an individualized treatment plan to help improve functioning.

What is "sensory diet"?
This is a term used to describe the amount and types of stimulation required by individuals on a daily basis in order to function optimally. A balanced "sensory diet" is defined as a planned and scheduled activity program that an OT develops specifically to meet the needs of the child's own nervous system.

What does a Physical Therapist do?
Pediatric physical therapists work to help children reach their maximum potential for functional independence. PT's support children from infancy through adolescence and collaborate with their families and other medical, educational, and rehabilitation specialists.

What are some areas that PT's address?

Positioning during daily routines and activities
Adapting toys for play
Expanding mobility options
Using equipment effectively
Provide information on the child's physical needs

What is a developmental delay?
A developmental delay occurs when your child has delayed achievements of one or more milestones. A physical therapist addresses motor delays and evaluates a child's motor performance. Some signs that your child may not be meeting his normal motor milestones and experiencing a developmental delay would include not bringing hands together, not rolling over, having head lag or not sitting by himself, or not crawling or walking at the age one would expect.

What is hypotonia and hypertonia? How do these conditions affect my child?
Hypotonia involves decreased muscle tone. Children with hypotonia seem floppy and feel like a "ragdoll" when held. A hypertonic child on the other hand has increased muscle tone. Children with hypertonia feel stiff, tight, and sometimes even rigid. Both of these conditions can cause a child to move abnormally and can cause developmental delays. A physical therapist can assist the child and family to learn better ways to move and enhance development of the child.