Poster 275: Intrathecal Baclofen Therapy and Speech in Children With Cerebral Palsy

Abstract

Objective: Evaluate the effect of intrathecal baclofen (ITB) therapy on various aspects of speech production in verbal children with cerebral palsy (CP). Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Tertiary care facility. Participants: Verbal CP patients with ITB pump. Interventions: Intrathecal baclofen. Main Outcome Measures: Speech clarity, fluency, volume, and fatigability. Results: A total of 10 patients have participated in the study so far. 6 participants reported a marked to moderate improvement in their speech clarity while 4 patients did not note changes. 5 participants noted a marked to moderate improvement, 2 noted a minimal improvement, and 3 did not note changes in their speech fluency. 6 of the participants reported a marked to moderate improvement in their speech volume, 1 noted minimal improvement, 1 did not report changes, and 2 reported worsening of their speech volume. 5 participants noted a marked to moderate improvement, 2 noted a minimal improvement, 2 reported no changes, and 1 reported worsening in their speech fatigability. 7 participants reported mild to marked improvements and 3 reported no changes in their overall speech. Conclusions: These findings suggest ITB may improve speech in verbal CP patients, at least subjectively. Future studies should evaluate these various aspects of speech production objectively and pulmonary function before and after ITB to determine if it improves speech in these patients.