CO Motor Speech Lab

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Dr. Hilger was recently interviewed on Radiolab for an episode exploring speech and the cerebellum. The conversation highlights how this often-overlooked brain structure contributes to timing, coordination, and the sound of speech, and why it matters for understanding motor speech disorders.

Episode: Song of the Cerebellum
🔗 link https://open.spotify.com/episode/5W7bXJCsouuGzr33J0Dgje?si=aS6yarxDTxW1JopTNh3BKQ&ct=1934&t=2157

Song of the Cerebellum Radiolab · Episode

Remember how quickly COVID spread in indoor spaces where people were simply talking? We have a new paper out examining how different types of voice production influence the aerosols released during speech and why this matters for infectious disease transmission. Our study tested six vocal tasks and found that the amount of airflow and how open the vocal folds are during speech are the strongest predictors of aerosol output. Loud speech and forced whispering produced the highest concentrations of particles, while glottal fry produced the lowest. We also found that the smallest particles dominate across all voice types and these are the ones that stay airborne the longest. One of the most important findings is that vocal fold vibration is not required for high aerosol emission. Whispering, which does not involve vocal fold vibration, still produced substantial aerosol output because of its high airflow and wide glottal opening. These results highlight the importance of airflow and vocal strategy, not just loudness, when considering how speech contributes to airborne disease transmission.

You can find the free Open Access paper here: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0321909

I am co-organizing a Walk n' Roll fundraiser on July 19th to raise money for the research and community support for cerebellar ataxia. Cerebellar ataxia is a condition that affects the cerebellum, usually caused by degenerative diseases such as spinocerebellar ataxia and Friedreich's Ataxia. It is the main condition I work with in my research on how neurological disease affects speech and swallowing. Cerebellar ataxia is gaining more awareness, mostly due to the advocacy work by Bill Nye the Science Guy whose family is affected by spinocerebellar ataxia. With increased funding support, we hope to develop more effective treatment and rehabilitation programs for people with ataxia.

This year is especially meaningful because a good friend of mine with ataxia, Michael Williams, passed away unexpectedly in June. Michael and I co-lead an ataxia support group here in Colorado along with our other co-leader, Becky Williams. Michael was a good friend and did amazing work for the ataxia community. This year's event is dedicated in his memory.

If you would like to donate to the event, feel free to click on the link below and click "Donate Now." If you knew Michael and would like to dedicate your donation, you can click "Dedicate this gift."

If you are in the area and would like to attend the event, it is going to be a gorgeous day at Sloane's Lake in Denver. Come on out!

Denver Walk N Roll I’m thrilled to be participating in Denver Walk N Roll, a fundraiser supporting National Ataxia Foundation! I’m passionate about this cause and need your help! Every donation—big or small—helps me reach my fundraising goal and directly impacts this important cause.

The CU Boulder Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences Clinic is offering a new therapy group, services provided at no cost. Details and contact info at bottom of flyer. Please share to anyone who may know people who might be interested.

Congratulations to our MA-SLP student Caitlin Cain for successfully defending her Master’s Thesis titled, “Acquired Dysarthria and Dysphagia in Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury!"

Congrats to University of Colorado Boulder SLHS Senior Ramey Yost for successfully defending her Honors Thesis titled, “Respiratory Coordination for Speech in Cerebellar Ataxia.” Amazing work Ramey!

Congratulations to our very own lab manager and University of Colorado Boulder SLHS senior Karis Lowe for successfully defending her Honors Thesis titled, “Analyzing Speech Characteristics of Spinocerebellar Ataxia Subtype 3 and Subtype 6!” Amazing work Karis!

Dr. Hilger is part part of a team of researchers running a study looking at how mothers provide instructions for their children. We finished recruiting mothers of typically developing children and are now looking for mothers of autistic children or children with autism. If you have an autistic child or child with autism who is 3-5 years of age, or know someone who is, feel free to reach out to [email protected]. The study is entirely online and you will receive a $20 Amazon gift card. You do not have to live in Colorado to participate as well! Message me with any questions. Thank you!

Many of you know that I am inolved in the National Ataxia Foundation and co-lead the Colorado Ataxia Support Group. We are having a fundraiser on October 5th from 7-9pm to raise money for ataxia research and community resources. The event will feature two comedians and will take place at the Curtis Hotel in Denver. Tickets are $100 and the cost of the tickets go toward these causes. Purchase tickets here:

https://fundraise.givesmart.com/vf/ComedyDENVER

Our lab has a newly published paper! Here is the link to the open access (meaning free) paper: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/rehabilitation-sciences/articles/10.3389/fresc.2024.1421730/full

The paper is a treatment case study to see how well a multi-lingual patient with suspected Progressive Supranuclear Palsy responded to the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT), a speech treatment originally designed to improve intelligibility and vocal loudness in Parkinson's Disease. There were some benefits for this patient, and in the paper we weigh these benefits against the intensiveness of the treatment.

The other unique thing about this study is that the patient is a client in the CU Boulder Speech, Language & Hearing Clinic and the treatment was completed by Clinical Assistant Professor and Director of the MA-SLP program, Holly Kleiber, and former MA-SLP graduate student (now speech-language pathologist) Mandy Sebestyen.

Frontiers | Case Report: Benefits of LSVT LOUD in a Multilingual patient with Hypokinetic-Hyperkinetic Dysarthria and Suspected Progressive Supranuclear Palsy Purpose: This case study measured how well the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) improved vocal features, intelligibility, and communicative effectiveness for a multilingual participant with hypokinetic-hyperkinetic dysarthria secondary to suspected progressive supranuclear palsy. LSVT treatment....

I want to highlight our amazing CU SLHS student volunteers. We couldn’t have done this event without you!