Speech DysfunctionNCT07650734
Posture, Tongue Position and Pronunciation
A study testing speech therapy treatment and speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercise in people with Speech Dysfunction, run by University of Haifa.
Trial summary
Background: The main speech organ that affects the pronunciation of the various vowels is the tongue. The relationships between posture and voice, and between the position of the tongue at rest and posture, have been proven, but the relationship between pronunciation and posture has not yet been proven. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 6 to 15 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Speech Dysfunction
- What is being tested?
- speech therapy treatment and speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercise
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 80 participants
- Where
- No sites listed yet
- Study dates
- 1 Jul 2026to 1 Jul 2028
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 6 to 15 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child
Who may be able to join
- People with normal hearing
- with and without pronunciation disorders
Who cannot join
- Children and teenagers who study in special education settings,
- children and teenagers with phonological disorders at the prosodic or segmental level,
- children and teenagers whose parents are under the impression that they do not hear well.
Trial locations and contacts
No sites are listed yet. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
About this study
Official title: The Relationship Between Posture, Tongue Position and Hebrew Sibilant Consonants Pronunciation, and the Effect of Muscle Strengthening Program in Children and Teenagers
Background: The main speech organ that affects the pronunciation of the various vowels is the tongue. The relationships between posture and voice, and between the position of the tongue at rest and posture, have been proven, but the relationship between pronunciation and posture has not yet been proven. The rationale for examining this relationship is that the imbalance and differing loads in poor neck and head posture cause different muscular arrangements of the muscles that support the jaw, tongue, and neck, which will thus affect pronunciation.
Objectives: To examine the relationship between posture, tongue position, and the correct pronunciation in subjects with and without pronunciation disorders. In addition, to examine the effect of a muscle strengthening program on these characteristics.
Methods: The study will include two parts. The first part will be a cross-sectional study using a questionnaire to examine speech therapists' perceptions of the relationship and importance of posture and pronunciation. The second part will include a prospective interventional clinical study to examine the relationship between tongue position at rest and pronunciation, posture, and muscle strength. In addition, the effect of adding muscle-strengthening training to conventional pronunciation therapy on the process of acquiring correct pronunciation will be examined.
Read the detailed description
This study will examine the relationship between posture, tongue position, and correct pronunciation in subjects with and without pronunciation disorders. In addition, we will examine the effect of a muscle-strengthening program on these characteristics.
The first part will include an online questionnaire to examine speech therapists' perceptions of the relationship and importance of posture in speech therapy treatment.
The second part will include a prospective interventional clinical study with participants with and without pronunciation disorders. The evaluation measures will include: assessment of the pronunciation by a speech therapist, assessment of posture (mobile app), assessment of tongue position at rest and during pronunciation (observation and ultrasound), measurement of neck and upper limb muscle strength (manual dynamometer), tongue strength (digital measuring spoon), jaw closing muscle strength (Byte), breathing, and swallowing (observation).
The study group with pronunciation disorder will be divided into 2 groups: the intervention group will receive an exercise program to strengthen the neck and upper-limb muscles in addition to regular speech therapy treatments. The control group will receive the regular speech therapy treatments. The evaluation measures will be reviewed again at the end of the treatment series (up to 10 treatments).
- Conditions
- Speech Dysfunction
- Being tested
- speech therapy treatment, speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercise
- Keywords
- pronunciation, posture, muscles, strength, tongue
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
speech therapy treatmentOther
regular treatment to enhance good pronunciation
speech therapy treatment and strengthening exerciseOther
speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercise
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| excercise | Experimental | will receive speech therapy treatment and, in addition, exercises for the neck and upper extremities. Receives: Other: speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercise |
| Control | Active comparator | will receive regular speech therapy treatment according to their disorder Receives: Other: speech therapy treatment |
| healthy control | No intervention | healthy control for baseline comparison, no treatment |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Treatment success
number of treatments until good pronunciation is achieved
Measured: at completion of intervention - up to 10 weeks
Secondary outcomes (4)
neck muscle strength
flexion and side flexion neck muscle strength via hand held dynamometer. Recorded in kilograms of force (kgf)
Measured: baseline, at completion of intervention - - up to 10 weeks
Tongue strength
Tongue strength will be assessed using a digital measuring spoon. Measurements will be recorded in g/cm2
Measured: base line, at completion of intervention - - up to 10 weeks
Jaw closing strength
jaw closing strength via Byte device
Measured: base line, at completion of intervention- - up to 10 weeks
Tongue thickness
Tongue thickness will be measured using ultrasonography. Measurements will be recorded in millimeters (cm).
Measured: base line, at completion of intervention- - up to 10 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted16 Jun 2026
- Study start1 Jul 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion1 Jul 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion1 Jul 2028 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Speech DysfunctionStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- Prospective interventional clinical study with participants with and without pronunciation disorders. Baseline examination will include all participants. Following, the study group (with pronunciation disorder) will be divided into 2 groups: the intervention group will receive an exercise program to strengthen the neck and upper-limb muscles in addition to regular speech therapy treatments. The control group will receive the regular speech therapy treatments. The evaluation measures will be reviewed again at the end of the treatment series (up to 10 treatments).
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Investigator
- Enrolment
- 80 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Haifa
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Gali Dar, University of Haifa
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07650734
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 237/26
- Status last verified
- Jun 2026
- First submitted
- 3 Jun 2026
- Last updated
- 16 Jun 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 16 Jun 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- The Relationship Between Posture, Tongue Position and Hebrew Sibilant Consonants Pronunciation, and the Effect of Muscle Strengthening Program in Children and Teenagers
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07650734
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- 237/26
- Conditions
- Speech Dysfunction
- Keywords
- pronunciation, posture, muscles, strength, tongue
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Not yet recruiting
- Enrolment
- 80 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of HaifaUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Jul 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion
- 1 Jul 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 1 Jul 2028 (estimated)
- First posted
- 16 Jun 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
Background: The main speech organ that affects the pronunciation of the various vowels is the tongue. The relationships between posture and voice, and between the position of the tongue at rest and posture, have been proven, but the relationship between pronunciation and posture has not yet been proven. The rationale for examining this relationship is that the imbalance and differing loads in poor neck and head posture cause different muscular arrangements of the muscles that support the jaw, tongue, and neck, which will thus affect pronunciation.
Objectives: To examine the relationship between posture, tongue position, and the correct pronunciation in subjects with and without pronunciation disorders. In addition, to examine the effect of a muscle strengthening program on these characteristics.
Methods: The study will include two parts. The first part will be a cross-sectional study using a questionnaire to examine speech therapists' perceptions of the relationship and importance of posture and pronunciation. The second part will include a prospective interventional clinical study to examine the relationship between tongue position at rest and pronunciation, posture, and muscle strength. In addition, the effect of adding muscle-strengthening training to conventional pronunciation therapy on the process of acquiring correct pronunciation will be examined.
Detailed description
This study will examine the relationship between posture, tongue position, and correct pronunciation in subjects with and without pronunciation disorders. In addition, we will examine the effect of a muscle-strengthening program on these characteristics.
The first part will include an online questionnaire to examine speech therapists' perceptions of the relationship and importance of posture in speech therapy treatment.
The second part will include a prospective interventional clinical study with participants with and without pronunciation disorders. The evaluation measures will include: assessment of the pronunciation by a speech therapist, assessment of posture (mobile app), assessment of tongue position at rest and during pronunciation (observation and ultrasound), measurement of neck and upper limb muscle strength (manual dynamometer), tongue strength (digital measuring spoon), jaw closing muscle strength (Byte), breathing, and swallowing (observation).
The study group with pronunciation disorder will be divided into 2 groups: the intervention group will receive an exercise program to strengthen the neck and upper-limb muscles in addition to regular speech therapy treatments. The control group will receive the regular speech therapy treatments. The evaluation measures will be reviewed again at the end of the treatment series (up to 10 treatments).
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (investigator)
- Number of arms
- 3
- Model description
- Prospective interventional clinical study with participants with and without pronunciation disorders. Baseline examination will include all participants. Following, the study group (with pronunciation disorder) will be divided into 2 groups: the intervention group will receive an exercise program to strengthen the neck and upper-limb muscles in addition to regular speech therapy treatments. The control group will receive the regular speech therapy treatments. The evaluation measures will be reviewed again at the end of the treatment series (up to 10 treatments).
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| excercise | Experimental | Other: speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercisewill receive speech therapy treatment and, in addition, exercises for the neck and upper extremities. |
| Control | Active comparator | Other: speech therapy treatmentwill receive regular speech therapy treatment according to their disorder |
| healthy control | No intervention | –healthy control for baseline comparison, no treatment |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 6 to 15 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child
Key inclusion criteria (2 listed)
- People with normal hearing
- with and without pronunciation disorders
Key exclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Children and teenagers who study in special education settings,
- children and teenagers with phonological disorders at the prosodic or segmental level,
- children and teenagers whose parents are under the impression that they do not hear well.
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| speech therapy treatmentregular treatment to enhance good pronunciation | Other | Control |
| speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercisespeech therapy treatment and strengthening exercise | Other | excercise |
Primary outcome
Treatment success
Time frame: at completion of intervention - up to 10 weeks
number of treatments until good pronunciation is achieved
4 secondary outcomes
neck muscle strength
Time frame: baseline, at completion of intervention - - up to 10 weeks
Tongue strength
Time frame: base line, at completion of intervention - - up to 10 weeks
Jaw closing strength
Time frame: base line, at completion of intervention- - up to 10 weeks
Tongue thickness
Time frame: base line, at completion of intervention- - up to 10 weeks
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 16 Jun 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing speech therapy treatment and speech therapy treatment and strengthening exercise in people with Speech Dysfunction, run by University of Haifa.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 2 inclusion and 3 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: opening soon, as of the sponsor's last update on 16 Jun 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Gali Dar, PhD (+972505662054, gdar@univ.haifa.ac.il), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Treatment success (time frame: at completion of intervention - up to 10 weeks). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 16 Jun 2026; AzTrials last refreshed its copy on 31 Oct 2026.