Original article
French adaptation of the “Frenchay Dysarthria Assessment 2” speech intelligibility test

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Abstract

Objectives

Speech intelligibility can be defined as “the degree to which a speaker's intended message is recovered by a listener”. Loss of intelligibility is one of the most frequent complaints in patients suffering from speech disorder, impairing communication. Measurement of intelligibility is therefore an important parameter in follow-up. We developed a French version of the “Frenchay Dysarthria Assessment, 2nd edition” (FDA-2), an intelligibility test recognized internationally in its English version. The present study details the construction of the test and its preliminary validation.

Materials and methods

We first compiled a set of words and phrases in French, based on the criteria defined in FDA-2. In a second step, we validated the test in healthy subjects in normal and noisy conditions, to check sensitivity to speech signal degradation.

Results

The test proved valid and sensitive, as scores were significantly lower for noise-degraded stimuli.

Conclusion

This French-language intelligibility test can be used to evaluate speech disorder: for example, in dysarthria, head and neck cancer or after cochlear implantation.

Keywords

Speech Intelligibility
Speech Disorder
Dysarthria
Head and Neck Cancer
Speech Production Measurement

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