Abstract:
Preventing relapse following treatment for stuttering remains a clinical priority. This
paper introduces a relapse management programme offered to six adolescents who
had improved their fluency immediately following treatment but who had relapsed in
the long-term. This paper details the effectiveness of this programme. Relapse was
based on the six subjects' stuttering frequency after at least two years following their
original treatment. Their stuttering frequency had increased substantially in comparison
with immediately after their original treatment, and was at least 5% syllables
stuttered (%SS) in conversation, on the telephone and at home. Outcomes for these
subjects were collected longitudinally up to two years after they received the relapse
management programme. Efficacy of the relapse management programme was
based on whether subjects were stuttering less than two years after the relapse programme
in the three speech contexts in comparison with their performance following
their original treatment. After two years, results showed a reoccurrence of relapse did
not occur for four of the six adolescents. These four were speaking fluently and naturally
at normal speech rates with minimal stuttering two years after the relapse
management programme. Two subjects improved their fluency in the short term, but
deteriorated once again in the long term. There was no clear trend for relapse to be
related to increased levels of anxiety, though there was a trend for relapse to be associated
with abnormal negative communication attitudes.
