Screening Checklist for Adults with Apraxia of Speech

Introduction: To adequately assess and treat patients with brain lesions, comprehensive assessment tools are necessary. This study aimed to develop and validate an apraxia of speech (AOS) screening checklist for adults. Methods: This study was conducted in four phases. The first phase involved tool development based on a scoping review of literature following the PRISMA framework. The developed items were modified in Phase II based on item content validity and the Delphi method. In Phase III, the developed checklist was administered to 110 participants (100 neurotypicals and 10 adults with AOS). The fourth phase involved evaluating the psychometric properties of the developed screening tool. Results: The developed tool contained twelve characteristics, divided into three categories: articulation, rate and prosody, and fluency, with five stimulus sets in Bengali. A content validity index (CVI) of 0.933 was obtained, indicating a good scale CVI. The receiver operating characteristic curve showed an area under the curve value of 1, indicating adequate ability to identify individuals with and without AOS. The developed AOS screening checklist also showed a significant correlation with Apraxia of Speech Rating Scale V1. Conclusion: Thus, the developed AOS screening checklist for adults is an effective, reliable, and valid tool for the age range of 20–60 years across various assessment and intervention settings.