The orofacial, oromotor, speech, and voice characteristics of adolescents in youth detention: a comparison of groups with and without prenatal alcohol exposure

ABSTRACT

Purpose

Language disorder is highly prevalent in youth justice; however, orofacial, oromotor, speech, and voice anomalies have been largely overlooked. There has been some documentation of these among individuals with prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE), and adolescents with PAE are over-represented in youth justice. The aims of this exploratory study were to (1) identify the prevalence of orofacial, oromotor, speech, and voice anomalies among adolescents in youth detention and (2) examine how these compare between adolescents with and without PAE.

Materials and Methods

In a youth detention centre, in which both non-Aboriginal and Aboriginal young peoples were detained, a speech-language pathologist conducted non-standardized orofacial and oromotor examinations with 95 adolescents, (47% with PAE). Observed speech and voice anomalies were also recorded. We analysed data according to PAE.

Results

Features consistent with malocclusions, and anomalies with oromotor function, speech, and voice were observed among the adolescents. There was no statistical difference between the PAE and no-PAE groups for any measure. However, stuttering, monotone voice, breathy voice, and irregular uvula were only observed in the PAE group, and frontal lisp, tongue incoordination, and weak upper facial muscles were only observed among the no-PAE group.

Conclusions

We identified high prevalence of orofacial, oromotor, speech, and voice anomalies among adolescents in youth detention. We discuss our findings in relation to our use of non-standardized assessment methods, assessment with Aboriginal young peoples, youth detention populations broadly being high-risk for health and developmental conditions, and the implications of the anomalies for the adolescents. Our findings are important for informing services in youth justice, and strengthen the argument that speech-language pathology services are essential in youth detention.

KEYWORDS:

• Youth justice
• speech
• oromotor
• prenatal alcohol exposure
• fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

Acknowledgements

We thank the adolescent adolescents and their circles of care for participating in this project, as well as the Department of Justice custodial and non-custodial staff. Thank you to Sharynne Hamilton for providing feedback on an early draft of this paper, and to Professor Carol Bower and Professor Rhonda Marriott, two chief investigators for the Banksia Hill project (in addition to Rochelle Watkins & Raewyn Mutch). Any material published or made publicly available by the authors cannot be considered as either endorsed by the Department of Justice or an expression of the policies or view of the Department. Any errors of omission or commission are the responsibility of the researchers.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Indigenous peoples is respectfully used when referring to global populations; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is used when referring to Australian populations; Aboriginal peoples is used when referring to participants in this study given that none of the adolescents identified as Torres Strait Islander young peoples.

Additional information

Funding

National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funded study: Improving the management of youth with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder in the justice system (#1072072); NHMRC-funded FASD Research Australia Centre of Research Excellence: Reducing the effects of antenatal alcohol on child health (#GNT1110341); FASD Research Australia CRE PhD scholarship; Australian Government Research Training Program PhD Scholarship. The funding sources were not involved with the study design, the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, the writing of the manuscript, or the decision to submit the article for publication.