The Lincoln times., 1955-03-21
EASTER SEAL SOCIETY SUPPORTED
Duke U. Speech Clinic Enables Many To Talk Again

DURHAM - Here at Duke
University, children and adults
who had lost the ability to talk
because of accident, sickness or
congenital disorders are doing
something very unusual and al
most unheard of - learning to
speak again.
Take the case of Samuel Will
son Roberts, a 43-year-old former
machiniSt of Durham. Left with a
severe language disability attend
ant to head injury and half par
alysis on the right side following
a July. 1858. automobile accident.
Roberts is a good example of what
is being done and can be done
with speech therapy.
Four months following the ac-
cident, Roberts conversation was
limited to the bi-Syllable "uh-uh
which was his only method of oral
communication Now he is able to
use speech to indicate wants and
to carry on a limited conversation
goals which were much beyond
his reach previously.
Then. there is Ferrell E. Deav-
er, an l8-year-Old Pink Hill resi-
dent, who developed normally
in speech ability until the age
of 16 months when he had siegeS
of colitis and erysipilas. From
then until last year when he
went to the Duke Speech Their
apy Clinic, sponsored by the n.
c. Society for Crippled Children
and Adults, not single sound
did he make correctly at all
times. Now, he can produce
sentences quite recOgnizably, ac-
cOrding to DIR. ROderick b. Or
mandy, speech pathOlOgist of
the Duke School of Medicine.
OTHER GASES
There are other cases. In fact,
SO children and adults from six
years to 43 years old have been or
are now undergoing treatment at
the Duke Speech Therapy Clinic
as result of grants made by the
Easter Seal Society, plus funds
provided by local society units for
treatment, transportation and
housing. when needed
But let Dr. Ormandy himself
tell you about his work, with the
aid of the total resources and pro-
fessionally trained workers of the
Duke Medical School, with Rob-
erts and young Ferrell:
LAS result of Roberts accident,
the activity of the soft palate was
restricted and there was further
restriction of the mobility of the
lips and use of the tip of the
tongue. In testing language func-
ton, we found the patient had dit-
ficulty in recognizing words, let
terS and numbers. as well as in the
expression of language. 1t was
necessary to work on improvement
of function in the affected parts
of the speech mechanism and to
teach him anew how to produce
single speech sounds" Dr.. Or
mandy relates.
EXERCISES USED
Roberts had to be taught how
to hold the lips together and hum
at the same time to produce m
He had to be taught how to hold
the tip of the tongue against the
gum ridge. and exercises were Civ
en- him to develop the strength of
the tongue n d control of its
movements so that he could pro-
duce an n. Other exercises were
used to help him learn how to pro-
long sound so that it would be
possible for him to utter more
than one sound at a time. Then
we moved to the W sound, and
rounding and protruding Of the
lips was the focus of activity at
this time. VoWelS were combined
with the first three sounds. and
the patient then learned to make
his first sentences in more than a
year. They were I owe money,
Why mail me money and I mean
mama will.
Nov. says Dr.. Ormandy,
Roberts has learned to make ac-