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Background: It is unclear whether oral diadochokinetic rate (oral-DDK) performance is affected by different languages within a multilingual country. Aims: This study investigated the effects of age, sex, and stimulus type (real word in L1, L2 vs. non-word) on oral-DDK rates among healthy Malaysian-Malay speakers in order to establish language- and age-sensitive norms. The second aim was to compared the nonword 'pataka' oral-DDK rates produced by Malaysian-Malay speakers on currently available normative data for Hebrew speakers and Malaysian-Mandarin speakers. Methods & Procedures: Oral-DDK performance of 90 participants (aged 20-77 years) using nonword ('pataka'), Malay real word ('patahkan'), and English real word ('buttercake') was audio recorded. The number of syllables produced in 8 seconds was calculated. Mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to examine the effects of stimulus type (nonword, Malay, and English real word), sex (male, female), age (younger, 20-40 years; middle, 41-60 years; older, [greater than or equal to]61 years), and their interactions on the oral-DDK rate. Data obtained were also compared with the raw data of Malaysian-Mandarin and Hebrew speakers from the previous studies. Outcomes & Results: A normative oral-DDK rate has been established for healthy Malaysian-Malay speakers. The oral-DDK rate was significantly affected by stimuli (p < 0.001). Malay real word showed the slowest rate, whereas there was no significant difference between English real word and nonword. The oral-DDK rate for Malay speakers was significantly higher than Mandarin and Hebrew speakers across stimuli (all p < 0.01). Interestingly, oral-DDK rates were not affected by age group for Malay speakers. Conclusions & Implications: Stimuli type and language affect the oral-DDK rate, indicating that speech-language therapists should consider using language-specific norms when assessing multilingual speakers.

Background: Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) serves as a compensatory intervention approach for individuals with aphasia and is often introduced by speech-language pathologists (SLPs) after outcomes from restorative approaches plateau. Communication partners (i.e., caregivers) have a pivotal role in ensuring the successful use of AAC by adults with aphasia. Despite there being a large body of research on the use of AAC by adults with aphasia little is known about the experience of caregivers of individuals with aphasia who use AAC in supporting its use. Aims: This study conducted in Malaysia was aimed to (a) explore the practices of Malaysian SLPs when introducing AAC to adults with acquired communication disorders (ACD) including aphasia and (b) describe the experience of caregivers regarding the use of AAC by adults with aphasia under their care. Method & Procedures: This mixed-methods study had two phases. In Phase 1, a survey was distributed to 200 SLPs throughout Malaysia. Thirty-seven SLPs who met the inclusion criteria of having a caseload of more than 80% adults and at least 20% adults with aphasia responded to the survey and provided information about their use of AAC. For Phase 2, eight caregivers of adults with aphasia who had been introduced to AAC were interviewed to obtain information about their experience using AAC. Outcomes & Results: Findings from Phase 1 indicated that Malaysian SLPs most often introduced unaided and low-tech AAC to adults with ACD (including aphasia). Most of them felt that they lacked knowledge and skills in the provision of AAC services to adults and hoped for more training. Three themes emerged from the qualitative content analysis conducted on interview transcripts from Phase 2: (a) the positive impact of the use of AAC, (b) challenges faced when using AAC, and (c) hopes for the future. The findings of this study suggest that both SLPs and caregivers recognize the importance of AAC for adults with ACD including aphasia and need to work together closely to promote inclusion of adults with aphasia who use AAC and acceptance of AAC as a form of aphasia rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is lack of review exploring holistic subacute aphasia management in the existing literature. This paper investigated current evidence-based intervention for individuals with subacute aphasia in the last decade to identify gaps and to guide future research on subacute aphasia. A scoping review following PRISMA-ScR was conducted across four databases. Literature published between 2011 and 2022 were identified and extracted. Twenty-three articles were analyzed following the A-FROM model. Study design, intervention protocol, and outcomes were tabulated. The findings warrant future research focusing on the integration of rTMS with other components of A-FORM, bilingualism, timing of treatment initiation, and interactional effect of cortical lesion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the effects of non‐word versus real word, age, and gender on oral‐DDK rates among healthy Malaysian-Mandarin speakers. Comparison between non-word of Malaysian-Mandarin and Hebrew speakers was examined. One-hundred and seventeen speakers (18–83 years old, 46% men) were audio‐recorded while performing non-word (repetition of "pataka") and real-word oral‐DDK tasks ("butter cake" and "怕他看 ([pha4tha1khan4])"). The number of syllables produced in 8 seconds was counted from the audio recording to derive the oral-DDK rates. A MANOVA was conducted to compare the rates between age groups (young = 18–40 years, n = 56; middle = 41–60 years, n = 39; older = 61–83 years, n = 22) and gender. In a second analysis, "pataka" results were compared between this study and previous findings with Hebrew speakers No gender effects were found. However, rates significantly decreased with age (p < 0.001). Repetition of real words was faster than that of non-words – English words (5.55 ± 1.19 syllables/s) > non‐words (5.29 ± 1.23) > Mandarin words (4.91 ± 1.13). Malaysian-Mandarin speakers performed slower than Hebrew speakers on "pataka" task. Aging has a large impact on oromotor functions, indicating that speech-language pathologists should consider using age-adjusted norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]