Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Use Among Patients Followed by a Multidisciplinary Cleft and Craniofacial Team

Abstract

Objective: To establish preliminary data describing the number of patients who visit a multidisciplinary cleft and craniofacial team who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) supports. Design: This retrospective study consisted of chart reviews for all patients who visited a single site’s multidisciplinary cleft and craniofacial team for 1 calendar year. Setting: A single multidisciplinary craniofacial team at a tertiary teaching hospital. Participants: Four hundred sixty-four patients met the inclusion criteria for this study. Of these, 59.9% (n = 278) were male and 40.1% (n = 186) were female. Results: Of the sample population, 6.9% (n = 32) were AAC users as they received AAC intervention in a therapeutic context, while 93.1% (n = 432) were not. The AAC group had a mean age of 5.1 years (standard deviation [SD]: 4.2) and was 68.8% (n = 22) male. The non-AAC group had a mean age of 6.3 (SD: 4.9) and was 59.3% (n = 256) male. Within the AAC group, 40.6% (n = 13) were found to have an identified syndromic diagnosis in comparison to 17.6% (n = 76) of the non-AAC group ( P = .003). Conclusions: This is the first study to report the prevalence of AAC use among patients in the care of multidisciplinary cleft and craniofacial teams. Our findings suggest that a subset of craniofacial team patients may have complex communication disorders that require AAC supports. Craniofacial teams should be aware of resources available for these patients so that the patients’ communication needs are met in the hospital, in school, and in the community.