Lena Torres
The role of teeth in hearing and speaking has been a topic of interest for many years. Teeth are important for speaking, and the entire mouth is essential for speech. The tongue, teeth, and lips all work together to form words by controlling the airflow out of the mouth. The tongue strikes the teeth or the roof of the mouth as some sounds are made. For example, sounds made with the tongue touching the front teeth are called dental, and sounds made with the tongue touching the alveolar ridge are called alveolar. Additionally, teeth play a role in hearing as well. Sound can travel through bone conduction, and oral structures are close to auditory structures. The SoundBite hearing system, for example, uses bone conduction via the teeth to transmit sound to the cochleae.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Sound conduction through teeth | Sound can be transmitted through teeth and bone to the cochlea, bypassing the external auditory canal and middle ear. |
| Teeth and speech | Teeth play a role in speech development and articulation. The tongue strikes the teeth or the roof of the mouth to form certain words and sounds. |
| Bone conduction devices | The SoundBite hearing system uses a microphone and removable oral appliance to conduct sound through the teeth and bone to the good ear. |
| Bone conduction advantages | Bone conduction devices are non-surgical, removable, and more affordable than other hearing aids. They can improve hearing by up to 26% according to trials. |
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What You'll Learn
Teeth and speech development
The development of teeth in children is closely linked to their speech development. Teeth play a crucial role in how children articulate words, produce sounds, and ultimately, their ability to talk. Without teeth, a child would face challenges with speech and even feeding.
At around one year of age, children begin to experiment with sounds and start to make requests through expressive language. During this developmental stage, they learn where to anchor sounds in their mouths. As they become more familiar with vocalization and moving their mouths, their sound production improves.
Healthy teeth and proper alignment are essential for clear and confident communication. Issues like misaligned teeth, missing teeth, or poor bite alignment can interfere with a child's ability to pronounce words clearly. For example, producing the ''s' and 'z' sounds accurately requires the sides of the tongue to touch the back teeth (molars) to prevent air from escaping through the sides of the mouth. If a child has missing teeth, they may push their tongue too far forward, resulting in a lisp.
Additionally, tongue thrusting, a swallowing pattern where the tongue pushes against the front teeth instead of resting on the roof of the mouth, can lead to speech issues. It can cause crowded teeth and impact the development of the palate, which is crucial for proper tongue placement during speech.
Good oral hygiene practices from a young age are important not only for maintaining healthy teeth but also for desensitizing children to having objects in their mouths, which can help with feeding. Early intervention is key to preventing long-term speech difficulties. Pediatric dentists and speech therapists can work together to address structural issues and ensure the proper development of oral health and speech.
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Bone conduction
Sound can travel through bone to the inner ear, even if the ear canal is blocked. This is known as bone conduction, and it is the reason why your voice sounds different to you when recorded and played back. Bone conduction occurs constantly as sound waves vibrate bones, specifically the bones in the skull. However, it is difficult for individuals to distinguish between sound being conveyed through bone or air.
The use of bone conduction is not a new concept. In the 15th century, Italian physician Girolamo Cardano discovered that when a rod was placed between someone's teeth and attached to a musical instrument, the person could hear the music despite their hearing loss. This method was later improved by French physician Jean Marc Gaspard Itard, who attached the other end of the rod to the mouth of another speaker, creating the "Rod of Itard". In 1923, Hugo Gernsback invented a new type of bone conduction hearing aid called the "Osophone". Today, there are many different types of bone conduction hearing aids, such as the bone-anchored hearing aid (BAHA), which was first implanted in patients in 1977.
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The SoundBite hearing system
Clinical trials have validated the safety and effectiveness of the SoundBite system, showing significant improvements in speech recognition and quality of life for patients with SSD. Trial participants reported high rates of auditory benefit and overall satisfaction, with an average improvement of 2.6 decibels, corresponding to a 26% increase in perceived hearing. The system also improved the ability to understand speech in environments with background noise, with one-third of participants experiencing an improvement of over 30%.
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The role of the tongue
The tongue is an extremely strong muscle that moves food around in our mouths when we chew. It also pushes food into a bolus and then pushes it down the oesophagus to our stomach.
The tongue is the most important articulator of speech. Speech requires the tongue to relax and move up and forward, which is the opposite of swallowing. For sound to resonate effectively, the less tongue root tension, the better. The quick movements of the tongue, necessary for rapid delivery, require very delicate control of the action of the tongue.
The tongue is one of the seven articulators used in speech. The other six are the lips, the velum or soft palate, the hard palate, the alveolar ridge, the larynx, and the jaws. The tongue is unique in that it can touch all the other articulators.
The lips can be pressed together or brought into contact with the teeth or each other to make different sounds. The velum or soft palate is often raised during speech to prevent air from escaping through the nose. The hard palate, or "roof of the mouth," can be touched by the tongue. The alveolar ridge, located between the top front teeth and the hard palate, has a rougher surface than it feels and is covered with little ridges. The larynx produces many different modifications in the flow of air from the chest to the mouth. The jaws move a lot during speech but cannot make contact with other articulators.
To produce speech sounds, the tongue must stabilize and mobilize. Selected parts of the tongue, lips, and jaw stabilize, and selected parts mobilize. For example, to produce the sound "th," the whole tongue must have internal tension to move the tongue anteriorly-posteriorly with control and interact spatially with the top incisors as air flows through.
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Air conduction
Body-level aids are reserved for cases of profound hearing loss. The processor is larger to accommodate more signal-processing options and greater amplification and is mounted at belt level. These are typically used only when other types of aids cannot be used. Air conduction hearing aids are considered medically necessary for the treatment of hearing loss when certain criteria are met. The hearing loss must be due to specific etiologies, and the degree of hearing loss must be confirmed by audiometry or other age-appropriate testing to be greater than or equal to 26 decibels (dB). Binaural air conduction hearing aids are considered medically necessary when both ears meet the aforementioned criteria, and binaural testing shows improved speech recognition using bilateral devices.
While air conduction hearing aids are widely used, some individuals cannot wear them due to chronic ear infections or malformed ear canals. In such cases, bone conduction hearing aids, like the SoundBite hearing system, are recommended. The SoundBite hearing system is a nonsurgical, removable bone-conduction hearing system that transmits sound via the teeth. It is intended to restore normal hearing to patients with SSD, conductive, or mixed hearing loss.
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Frequently asked questions
Sound can travel through bone conduction, where sound vibrations are transmitted to the brain through the cranial bones. Teeth play a role in this process by conducting sound through the bone to the ear.
The entire mouth, including the teeth, is essential for speech. The lips, tongue, and teeth work together to form words by controlling the airflow out of the mouth. The tongue strikes the teeth or the roof of the mouth to produce certain sounds.
The SoundBite hearing system consists of a small microphone and a removable intraoral device that captures sound and transmits it wirelessly to the device. The device then produces imperceptible sound vibrations that are conducted via the teeth and bone to the cochleae, allowing the user to hear.
The SoundBite hearing system is a nonsurgical and non-invasive hearing solution for people with SSD, conductive, or mixed hearing loss. It is more affordable and convenient than other bone conduction devices that require surgery, such as bone-anchored hearing aids.
