New therapy for treating hypernasal speech using continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP)

The purpose of this report is to introduce a new therapy technique for treating hypernasality. The instrumentation consists of a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device that delivers air pressure by means of a hose and nasal mask assembly to the nasal cavities. This positive pressure is theoretically useful in providing resistance training to strengthen the velopharyngeal closure muscles. Speech drillwork is conducted in the patient’s home and consists of production of VNCV syllables and short sentences with the nasal mask worn by the patient. Incremental changes in CPAP pressure and time per therapy session occur over an 8-week course of therapy. Six case studies are presented. The preliminary results suggest that CPAP therapy may be effective in reducing hypernasality in individuals exhibiting mild to moderate degrees of severity.