In this study, we examined the effects of differences in vocal tasks and rating scales on auditory perceptual evaluation of hoarseness, using the GRBAS scale and Consensus Auditory-Perceptual Evaluation of Voice (CAPE-V). We compared "sustained vowel" with "sustained vowel + 4 short sentences" as vocal tasks, and the Verbal Rating Scale (VRS) with Visual Analog Scale (VAS) as rating scales. Three evaluators, two otolaryngologists and a speech-language therapist with more than 10 years of clinical experience in voice disorders, evaluated grade (G) or overall severity, rough (R) or roughness, and breathy (B) or breathiness.
The reliability of the VRS was higher for "sustained vowel + 4 short sentences" than for "sustained vowel" alone (ICC(2,1) = 0.803-0.925). The VAS was also more reliable for "sustained vowel + 4 short sentences," except for roughness (ICC(2,1) = 0.904, 0.937). The VAS was more reliable than the VRS (ICC(2,1) = 0.677-0.896, 0.803-0.937). Adding 4 short sentences to a sustained vowel was evaluated as showing significantly more severity in the VRS for breathy (B) and in the VAS for overall severity and breathiness ratings. This suggests that the addition of short sentences to a sustained vowel vocal task may have some effect on auditory perceptual evaluation of hoarseness.

Tube phonation is a semi-occluded vocal tract exercise used for vocal training in patients with voice disorders. During tube phonation, focus is placed on the vibratory sensations around the lips, as they may help the patient find the optimal glottal and upper larynx settings. However, it is difficult to monitor the magnitude of a patient's vibratory sensations during tube phonation and judge the practice's accuracy objectively. This study therefore proposed a portable visual feedback system, "Smart Tube," that can measure the amplitude and fundamental frequency of the vibrations of the tube and provide corresponding feedback through LED lights in real time. During a three-month evaluation of the system for a patient with voice disorders, the system was used continuously and demonstrated good usability. The visual feedback by LED clearly indicated the objective of the home practice as well as its accuracy; moreover, the practice had a positive effect on the patient's mental wellbeing. These results suggest that Smart Tube can facilitate sharing of a mutual understanding between the patient and the speech-language-hearing therapist and become a useful tool for conducting continuous tube phonation at home.

The number of multilingual speakers living in Japan has increased in recent decades, and speech therapists today are therefore increasingly likely to conduct speech-language evaluation and therapy in two or more languages. Here we present a bilingual child with misarticulation only found when speaking English. The boy, aged three years and eleven months, came to our outpatient clinic with no medical record of developmental problems besides his speech sound errors. After examination of his speech structures and functions by an otorhinolaryngologist, we performed two tests of articulation, Kouon Kensa in Japanese and Goldman-Fristoe Test of Articulation 2 in English, and undertook informal assessment of the child's receptive and expressive language, hearing, and oral mechanism. Perceptual analysis revealed correct sound productions except for a consistent error (omission) in consonant clusters in English, such as [pun] for "spoon"/spun/. We conducted a trial therapy in which oral airflow (/s/-like gesture) followed by an articulatory closure for /p/ and /t/ was successfully imitated. A daily home program was provided and performed for three months. The follow-up evaluation showed that the consonant clusters were correctly produced in the test of articulation and in conversational speech. Consonant clusters are the most common class of misarticulation among English-speaking children. When a speech therapist conducts evaluation of a multilingual speaker or a non-Japanese-speaking person, it is necessary to prepare tools and tasks corresponding to the patient's language or languages. An auditory-perceptual analysis of speech may be assisted by the family members. Understanding the phonemic and phonetic characteristics of a language appears to be essential for proper assessment of articulation.

Dysarthria is a collective name of speech disorders defined as "abnormalities of speech sounds caused by disturbances in the neuromuscular systems involved in the process of speech execution.” The term "運動障害性構音障害" (literally, “articulation disorders caused by motor disorders”) has long been used as a translation of “dysarthria” in the Japanese Health Insurance reimbursement system and in the national examination criteria for speech-language-hearing therapists. However, there have been various discussions about the validity of this translation. For example, the definitional distinction from "運動性構音障害” (literally, “motor-related articulation disorders”), which is the translation of "motor speech disorders," has not been properly adopted, resulting in confusion in usage, or inappropriate use of "構音," “articulation,” for all coordinated motor functions related to speech. The Speech, Language and Development Committee of the Japan Society of Logopedics and Phoniatrics (JSLP) has examined the need for a proper translation for “dysarthria” which can be shared by researchers and is understandable not only to specialists but also to the public, including patients. Here, we reviewed how the definition of dysarthria has evolved in Europe and the U.S., as well as how discussions have developed regarding the translated name in Japan. As our conclusion, we have proposed the term "発語運動障害," literally, “motor disorders of speech,” as an appropriate translation of “dysarthria.”