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INcorporating VoIce AcTivated Communication Aids Into Everyday Communication

NCT05859438 · Status: ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 30

Last updated 2025-03-30

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Dysarthria is a speech disorder resulting in speech that is slow, slurred and difficult to understand, limiting a person's opportunities to study, work, and develop relationships.

People with dysarthria often use communication aids to help them to communicate creating spoken messages using a keyboard, touchscreen or joystick. Communication aids can increase independence but are often too slow to keep pace with normal conversation.

Developments in speech recognition technology have led to apps which can learn to recognise a set of words or sounds spoken by the individual with dysarthria, and connect these with a clear spoken output. The investigator's previous research provides some evidence that these voice input communication apps may be faster than traditional communication aids. This study aims to find out who can benefit from this technology, and what support they will need to use it successfully. This information can be used by professionals involved in providing communication aids, and will help the investigators to plan further research into their effectiveness.

This research has two phases:

1. 20-30 individuals with dysarthria will be asked to use a voice input communication app for 6 months. The investigator's will collect information on whether VocaTempo improves their communication, and helps participants to reach their goals.
2. Focus groups will be held with professionals involved in providing and supporting people with communication aids, to understand factors affecting their ability to provide the support identified as needed in part 1 of the research.

The investigators have a panel of communication aid users, who are advising and contributing throughout the study, for example, helping the investigators to identify informal support networks to recruit participants from. The investigators will let people know about the findings through support groups used by people with dysarthria, publications read by people involved in providing communication aids, and academic papers and conferences.

Conditions

  • Dysarthria

Interventions

OTHER

Communication aid support

Support to use voice input voice output communication aids

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

    collaborator OTHER

  • University of Sheffield

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Kate Fryer · University of Sheffield

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2023-05-31
Primary Completion
2025-03-31
Completion
2025-04-30

Countries

  • United Kingdom

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT05859438 on ClinicalTrials.gov