Ultrasonography

Ultrasound is a visual feedback tool that can be used in speech pathology as assessment, treatment, and research. Ultrasound images are made from sound waves that can be focused on the tongue by a scanning device called a transducer. By imaging the outline of the surface of the tongue, the viewer is able to see the shape of the tongue and any movement made. Although there was some early experimentation with 2-D ultrasound in the area of speech science research and speech habilitation research beginning in the 1980s, it was not until the first decade of the 2000s that the potential for the use of ultrasound as a clinical tool in speech pathology was demonstrated as a safe and effective way to enhance speech intervention. ...