Abstract
ABSTRACT Purpose: to analyze the compensatory strategies used by subjects with ankyloglossia for the production of the consonantal alveolar flap sound /ɾ/. Methods: a cross-sectional analytic observational comparative study was conducted with 88 subjects, 44 being diagnosed with ankyloglossia and 44 with normal lingual frenulum, matched by age and gender. They were asked to repeat the syllable /ra/ five times in a row. Video recordings of the speech were taken. Frame by frame analysis of all recordings were performed to verify tongue, lip, and mandible movements during the production of the alveolar flap. The analysis of the films was performed by two Speech Language Pathologists specialized in Orofacial Myofunctional Disorder. Fisher’s Exact Test was used for statistical treatment (p≤0.05.) Results: the frame by frame analysis of the alveolar flap production of subjects with and without ankyloglossia showed that subjects with ankyloglossia performed several compensatory strategies when producing this sound. There was a statistically significant difference (p=0.001) when subjects with and without ankyloglossia were compared. Conclusion: subjects with ankyloglossia used several lip, tongue, and mandible compensatory strategies to produce the Brazilian Portuguese consonantal alveolar flap /ɾ/.
Highlights
The presence of a frenulum in the human body occurs when there was, originally, an embryonic fusion of two surfaces, which later are separated during normal growth
The subjects with ankyloglossia had reduced mouth opening, mandible deviation, elevation of the lateral sides of the tongue, tongue deviation, cupping of the tongue, mandibular vertical movements, tongue blade deformation, and variation of the articulation point when producing the alveolar flap (Figure 1). Those strategies were not observed in the subjects without ankyloglossia
Of the 44 subjects with ankyloglossia only three subjects had lip motions when producing the alveolar flap and only two had variations of the manner of articulation
Summary
The presence of a frenulum in the human body occurs when there was, originally, an embryonic fusion of two surfaces, which later are separated during normal growth. The tongue and the floor of the mouth are originally fused and separated during the embryonic development, originating the lingual frenulum[1,2]. The point of frenulum attachment to the tongue and to the floor of the mouth does not change over time[7]; its histological constitution does not allow spontaneous rupture or elongation by means of exercises[8]. Those facts justify the importance of early diagnosis for ankyloglossia
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