Speech-Language Therapy

Cheyenne Regional Medical Center’s Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) team addresses problems with swallowing, voice, cognition (thinking skills) and speech.

Our therapists work with both children and adults who have neurological disorders, dementia, head injuries (including concussions) and other conditions, including stroke.

Below, you’ll see the wide variety of speech-language therapy treatments and services we provide here at CRMC.

For more information about speech-language therapy services at Cheyenne Regional Medical Center, please call (307) 773-8120.

Aphasia treatment

Aphasia is the loss or inability to understand or express speech, typically caused by stroke, traumatic brain injury or brain masses. Speech-language pathologist (SLP) interventions can help patients:

Restore as much of their speech and language as possible
Communicate at the highest level of independence.
Find alternative ways to communicate

Augmentative and alternative communication

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) refers to either low tech or higher tech (computer based “talkers”) systems to help people with significant communication difficulty, including autism spectrum disorder, congenital disorders, stroke, traumatic brain injury, or progressive neurological disorders (i.e. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).

Cheyenne Regional’s speech-language pathologists have experience with a wide variety of AAC devices, including:

Communication boards
Letter boards
iPad-based apps
High-tech computerized communication devices

Cognitive rehabilitation

Cognitive deficits can arise for a variety of reasons, including stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), concussion, neurodegenerative disorders (i.e. Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease), and dementia.

FEES Assessment

Cheyenne Regional Medical Center is currently the only hospital in Wyoming to offer a Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES) assessment.

During this 10- to 15-minute outpatient procedure, we’ll pass an endoscopic camera through the patient’s nose to view real-time information about their swallow, which includes:

Pharyngeal (throat) structures
Laryngeal (voice box) structures
Swallow function
Impact of various strategies and textures on swallow safety

Head and neck cancer rehabilitation

Our speech-language pathologists can address specific needs at any treatment stage to enhance a patient’s quality of life for communication or eating/drinking, including:

Electrolarynx training
Management of trismus and other structural changes
- Therabite training
- Myofascial release
Swallow exercise program training (i.e. Pharyngocise)
Treatment for laryngectomies
Tracheoesophageal Puncture (TEPs) management

Modified barium swallow studies

Also known as a Videofluoroscopic Swallowing Study (VFSS), modified barium swallow studies can be done with both adults and infants/children here at Cheyenne Regional.

During this 10- to 15-minute outpatient radiology procedure, we can get a direct, dynamic view of the anatomy, physiology and biomechanics of the patient’s

Oral stage (mouth and tongue)
Pharyngeal stage (throat, back of tongue)
Upper esophagus during swallowing

This thorough evaluation helps determination neuromuscular function to drive treatment and help make recommendations for diet textures and strategies to help with swallow safety.

Motor speech disorders

Motor speech refers to a group of neurogenic speech disorders characterized by changes in strength, speed, tone, and accuracy of movements required for breathing, speech sound production, and articulation. These include Dysarthria, Apraxia and Ataxia.

Motor speech disorders are changes in actual speech production that can happen as a result of stroke, traumatic brain injury (TBI), neurodegenerative disorders (Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s Disease, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), or congenital disorders (i.e., Spinocerebellar Ataxia).

Cognitive linguistic deficits include difficulty across multiple areas of memory and thinking, including difficulty organizing thoughts, reduced attention, difficulty with memory, issues with planning and/or problem-solving, and visual perceptual changes

Pediatric language, feeding & swallowing therapy

Our experienced pediatric Speech-Language Pathology (SLP) team treats children with expressive and receptive language delays (or language that is below age expectations), as well as provides pediatric feeding and swallowing therapy.

Articulation interventions

Language development and delays may occur in the presence of autism, intellectual or developmental disabilities, attention deficits and hyperactivity disorder, and hearing loss.

Cheyenne Regional’s SLPs can intervene and treat a combination of difficulties with perception, motor production, and phonological representation of speech sounds in children, using both phonological and language-based approaches to address phonological intervention for speech sounds.

During articulation interventions, our team first focuses on the establishment, generalization and maintenance of speech sound production, then moves into carryover of skills into increasingly challenging levels (syllables, words, phrases/sentences, conversation).

Feeding and swallowing

Our SLPs have years of experience addressing pediatric feeding and swallowing difficulties (dysphagia), ranging from breast/bottle feeding, to table foods, to transitions to open cups and textured food items.

Additionally, the team can evaluate and treat infants and children for a variety of feeding disorders, including:

Pediatric feeding disorder (PFD)
Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID)

Swallowing evaluation and treatment

Speech-language pathologists can assess and treat swallowing disorders (dysphagia) through use of a variety of treatment strategies, such as:

Compensatory Strategy training
Diet modifications
Education

Voice treatments

Our experienced speech-language pathologists evaluate and treat a variety of voice disorders, including:

Vocal cord dysfunction
Vocal nodules
Dysphonia

One of the treatments available is LSVT LOUD (Lee Silverman Voice Treatment), developed specifically to work for individuals with Parkinson’s Disease (PD) and other neurological conditions.

LSVT LOUD specifically address concerns with voice and loudness when speaking in the home, work, or community, and it can be beneficial to individuals at all stages of PD.