At Westside Voice and Swallowing, we work with you to prevent, diagnose, and rehabilitate your voice, swallowing, speech, and/or language concerns. As voice and swallowing specialists, we provide specialized procedures to diagnose and determine the best course of treatment. We collaborate with ENTs and laryngologists to determine the cause of each client’s condition and effects of therapy.
The clinicians at Westside Voice and Swallowing also offer home visits to local residences and assisted living facilities for those patients with difficulty travelling. Disorders evaluated and treated include:
Voice disorders occur when there are problems with pitch, volume, or quality of the voice. This may include hoarseness, breathiness, vocal fatigue, or complete voice loss.
Aphasia is a language disorder caused by damage to the brain, most commonly after a stroke or brain injury. It affects a person’s ability to speak, understand language, read, or write.
Apraxia of speech is a motor speech disorder in which the brain has difficulty planning and coordinating the movements needed for speech. Individuals know what they want to say but struggle to produce the correct sounds.
Paradoxical Vocal Fold Movement (PVFM) is a condition in which the vocal folds close instead of opening during breathing, causing breathing difficulty, throat tightness, or noisy breathing.
A motor speech disorder caused by weakness or poor coordination of the speech muscles, often due to neurological damage.
A condition causing sudden weakness or paralysis of the facial muscles due to facial nerve dysfunction. It can affect speech, facial expression, and swallowing.
Stuttering involves repetitions, prolongations, or blocks. Cluttering involves rapid or irregular speech that is difficult to understand.
A brain injury caused by an external force (e.g., accident or fall) that may affect speech, language, cognition, memory, and swallowing.
Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) therapy service that uses communication devices, picture boards, or speech-generating devices to help individuals who cannot communicate verbally.
Accent Reduction Training is a specialized program designed to help individuals improve pronunciation, clarity, and fluency in spoken language to enhance confidence and effective communication in personal and professional settings.
Dysphagia is a swallowing disorder that makes it difficult to safely chew or swallow food and liquids. It may result from neurological conditions, muscle weakness, or structural problems.
Chronic cough services focus on identifying the underlying cause of a persistent cough lasting more than eight weeks. Comprehensive evaluation helps detect conditions such as asthma, allergies, acid reflux, or respiratory infections.
Cognitive communication services focus on improving thinking and communication skills affected by brain injury, stroke, or neurological conditions. Therapy helps enhance memory, attention, problem-solving, and social interaction abilities.
BERP Therapy (Breathing, Exercise, and Respiratory Performance Therapy) is a specialized rehabilitation approach designed to improve breathing efficiency, voice control, and overall respiratory strength.
An evaluation includes gathering the patient’s history, obtaining doctor’s notes/referrals, and conducting formal and informal assessment tasks. Some essential instrumentation evaluation procedures are below:
Oral/Rigid Stroboscopy is used to visually evaluate how the vocal folds are vibrating. This important instrument gives us a close up view of the structures inside and around the larynx to better assess the cause of the vocal impairment, as well as to chart progress. This procedure is conveniently offered in the office.
Modified Barium Swallow Study (MBSS) is considered the gold-standard procedure in assessing swallowing function. These diagnostic tests are conducted in the Radiology Department at Mt. Sinai West.
Therapy typically occurs weekly, once a week, for 30 minutes to an hour. The length of time varies but can last between four weeks to a few months. Some specialized treatment methods are below:
LSVT LOUD is an evidence based treatment protocol used with patients who have been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.
Accent Reduction Training for those looking to improve their pronunciation of the English language is now being offered! Email or call for more information.
Neuromuscular Taping-The NeuroMuscular Taping Concept (NMTConcept) is a development of taping based on a deep awareness of exteroceptive stimulation through an elastic adhesive tape. The tape is applied on the surface of the body and offers decompression and/or compression action.
