There are several methods for diagnosing<unk> ity. *A speech therapist listens to and records the child while analysing perceptual speech. In<unk> ity, the child cannot produce oral sounds (vowels and consonants) correctly. Only the nasal sounds can be correctly produced. A hearing test is also desirable. *A mirror is held beneath the nose while the child pronounces the vowels. Nasal air escape, and thus<unk> ity, is indicated if the mirror fogs up. *A pressure-flow technique is used to measure velopharyngeal orifice area during the speech. The patient must be at least three to four years old. *A video nasopharyngeal endoscopy observes velopharyngeal function, movements of the soft palate, and pharyngeal walls. It utilises a very small scope placed in the back of the nasal cavity. The doctor will then ask the child to say a few words. The patient must be at least three to four years old to ensure cooperation. *A cinefluoroscopy gives dynamic visualisation and can easier be applied to younger children, though it has the disadvantage of exposing the patient to radiation. *A nasometer calculates the ratio of nasality. The patient wears a headset, where the oral and nasal cavities are separated by a plate. On both sides of the plate are microphones. The ratio calculated by the nasometer indicates the amount of nasality, with a higher ratio indicating more nasality. Effects on language<unk> ity is generally segmented into so-called 'resonance' effects in vowels and some voiced or sonorant consonants and the effects of excess nasal airflow during those consonants requiring a buildup of oral air pressure, such as stop consonants (as /p/) or sibilants (as /s/). The latter nasal airflow problem is termed 'nasal emission', and acts to prevent the buildup of air pressure and thus prevent the normal production of the consonant. In testing for resonance effects without the aid of technology, speech pathologists are asked to rate the speech by listening to a recorded sentence or paragraph, though there is much variability in such subjective ratings, for at least two reasons. First, the acoustic effect of a given velopharyngeal opening varies greatly depending on the degree of occlusion of the nasal passageways. (This is the reason why a stuffy nose from an allergy or cold will sound more nasal than when the nose is clear.) Secondly, for many persons with<unk> , especially hearing impaired, there are also mispronunciations of the articulation of the vowels. It is extremely difficult to separate the acoustic effects of<unk> ity from the acoustic effects of mispronounced vowels ( examples). Of course, in speech training of the hearing impaired, there is little possibility of making nasality judgments aurally, and holding a finger to the side of the nose, to feel voice frequency vibration, is sometimes recommended.
Hypernasal speech
Stilted speech
Compulsive hoarding
Alaryngeal speech
Speech delay
Nasal voice
Hoarse voice
Receptive aphasia