Question
What do you think about using an app like Spectrograph to provide external feedback for patients with Parkinson's disease?
Answer
I love external feedback for patients. I do not know that particular app. However, I think external feedback is great and when we are doing it, we always have to be careful not to do it too much. Whenever we are doing biofeedback like that, we want to do it only a little bit so the patient gets an idea of what we are talking about. I think sometimes we are so used to what it feels like to speak and what we are doing to speak, that we forget that before we became speech pathologists we could not have thought about these things. Our patients sometimes also cannot. I love it for that perspective, but I always try to withdraw it before the patient becomes dependent on it. We want them actually focusing on how they feel more than that external feedback, so that they can transition it to their everyday life.
Jessica Huber Ph.D., CCC-SLP, is an Associate Professor at Purdue University in the Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences Department. Her research emphasis is on the effects of aging and motor disorders on speech production. Her current research focus is the treatment speech, balance, and cognitive changes as a result of Parkinson's disease and aging.
