Framework for Differential Diagnosis of Pediatric Motor Speech Disorders

This course with Dr. Edythe Strand provides an overview of rationale, methods, and interpretation of assessment tasks used toward differential diagnosis of children with speech sound disorders. Emphasis is focused on those tasks important to identifying or ruling out pediatric motor speech disorders, childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) or dysarthria. This course will facilitate the clinician’s ability to choose and administer appropriate assessment tasks for individual children, interpret and compare the child’s responses with accepted behavioral characteristics associated with a specific diagnostic label, and use assessment findings to help plan appropriate treatment. Key concepts are illustrated through graphical representations of the mechanisms behind motor speech disorders, and through brief patient videos. Clinicians should take this course in order to increase confidence in their ability to differentially diagnose children with motor speech disorders, especially childhood apraxia of speech.