A Survey of Speech Sound Disorders in Clinical Settings

Objectives: It has been reported that children with speech sound disorders (SSD) compose a large percentage of caseloads for speech-language pathologists (SLPs). However, there is no available data on the prevalence of SSD in Korea. This study aims to investigate the prevalence and current clinical status of SSD, especially focusing on SSD without other communication problems (pure SSD). Methods: A survey was delivered to SLPs via email or smartphone application; a total of 457 SLPs answered the survey. A descriptive analysis was used to examine caseload characteristics by gender and age of clinical cases. A comparative design was used to examine SSD and pure SSD caseloads depending on a clinician's educational degrees, years of experience, clinical setting, etc. Results: Forty-four point one percent of the speech-language service caseloads showed SSD, with 11.61% pure SSD. Boys made up 68% of those with SSD or pure SSD. The results revealed that the number of SSD caseloads was significantly different across clinicians' educational degrees, while not significantly different across types of clinical settings and clinicians' years of experience. Conclusion: This survey provides a perspective on the current status of speech-language services and a foundation for future investigations on SSD.