Speech Recognition in Noise by Children with and without Dyslexia: How is it Related to Reading?
Susan Nittrouer, Letitia M Krieg, Joanna H Lowenstein
PMID 29724639WHAT IT FOUND
Flattened frequency speech did not explain hearing speech problems in children with dyslexia.
They still recognized speech less accurately in noise and quiet than typical peers. Reading and listening in noise relied on different language skills.
Key findings
01Flattened frequency speech did not affect children with dyslexia more than children without dyslexia.
02Children with dyslexia recognized sentences less accurately in quiet and in noise than children without dyslexia.
03Reading ability was most closely linked to phonological awareness, while speech recognition in noise was linked to vocabulary and grammar.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
This was an assessment study, not a treatment trial, so it cannot show what therapy works. Children with dyslexia were already receiving school or private intervention, so the results may not represent untreated children. Dyslexia diagnoses came from different school or clinical settings and the exact tests used varied. The study tested only one kind of frequency flattening, so other auditory processing problems were not ruled out. Some children with dyslexia had reading standard scores within the normal range, although they had prior diagnoses and current intervention.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that children with dyslexia have a spectral processing disorder. They recognized speech less accurately in noise, but the flattened frequency speech did not affect them more than typical children.