Oral Motor Disorders in Adolescents

Oral-motor skills involve the movements of the lips, jaw, tongue and cheeks. These muscles are important for eating, drinking and speech.

Evaluation of oral motor skills should include assessment of jaw stability and strength, as well as coordination, strength and range of motion of the lips and tongue. If an adolescent presents with reduced oral motor skills that are negatively affecting his/her function, treatment would be recommended. An example would be if an adolescent is unable to elevate his/her tongue. This would make production of /l/ difficult, and therefore cause an articulation error. Treatment to facilitate the needed tongue movement would allow the adolescent to acquire speech sounds appropriately.