Pediatric Speech Therapy

Speech Therapy Mary Lanning Healthcare’s Pediatric Speech Therapy Department treats speech, language and swallowing conditions and disorders for all ages. Services are individualized using comprehensive assessments, treatment modalities and approaches. Mary Lanning Healthcare’s Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs)
are licensed and certified by the American Speech- Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) – the most respected voice for communication sciences and disorders.

Evaluation and treatment of:

• Articulation or speech sound development
• Phonological processes
• Voice disorders
• Speech disturbances and fluency
• Swallowing disorders, including modified barium swallow (MBS) studies
• Infant feeding difficulties
• Myofunctional Therapy
• Oral motor control and function
• Alternative/augmentative communication means
• Patient/family education, training, and instruction on the use of speech generating devices

Our therapists are certified and trained in the following therapy modalities:

• Vital Stim/Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation (NMES)
• Beckman Oral Motor Technique
• SOS Approach to Feeding
• Myofunctional Therapy
• Interactive Metronome
• Bioness Integrated Therapy System (BITS)

Infant Feeding

Is your baby struggling to feed at bottle or breast? Mary Lanning’s Pediatric SLPs can help with improving oral motor function and suck training to reduce symptoms such as:

• Coughing/choking/gagging
• Refusal
• Painful latch
• Poor weight gain
• Losing milk from sides of mouth
• Gasiness
• Nasal congestion/backflow
• Reflux/spit up

Our SLPs know when to refer to other providers such as lactation consultation, an Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) Specialist, a pediatric dentist or preferred provider for further assessment of possible lip, tongue, or cheek restrictions, gastroenterology, occupational or physical therapy, or a chiropractor.

Myofunctional therapy

Myofunctional therapy is individualized therapy to help each patient retrain muscle function, create and maintain a healthy orofacial environment. Signs and symptoms that your child may benefit from myofunctional therapy include:

• Prolonged thumb/finger sucking or pacifier use
• May be suspected by dental malocclusions and distortions
• Mouth breathing
• Resting with the lips apart
• TMJ or Jaw Pain
• Teeth Grinding/Clinching
• ADHD
• Snoring/Sleep Apnea
• Tongue Thrust
• Resting posture of the tongue between the teeth, lisping, incorrect placement of tongue during eating

Treatment may include:

• Correct tongue and lip resting postures
• Establish nasal breathing patterns
• Improve tongue and lip function
• Improve chewing and swallowing patterns
• Address harmful oral habits such as prolonged pacifier use, thumb/digit sucking, fingernail/cheek/lip biting, tongue sucking, and clenching/grinding of teeth
• Identify the need for speech and/or swallowing treatment
• Aid in the stabilization of the teeth during and/or after orthodontic treatment

Appropriate Treatment Population includes:

• Average age to begin therapy is 4-5
• When sucking habits have been eliminated
• When palatal expansion is completed
• Patient has language skills necessary to follow multiple step instructions
• School and social obligations are taken into consideration
• Patient and family committed to therapy program

The myofunctional therapist serves as the “tour guide” for the entire process.

• Additional consultations and referrals will likely include:
• ENT
• Orthodontists
• Dentists
• Chiropractors
• Allergist

The best outcomes are achieved when the entire family is involved in the myofunctional therapy program and parents/caregivers are directly involved in therapy.