Tunisian Validation of the Dysarthria Clinical Evaluation Battery

BACKGROUND: Dysarthria is defined as a motor speech disorder that can cause major communication problems. Meticulous assessment of this disorder is crucial for adequate therapeutic follow-up. AIM: To Provide tunisian speech therapists with an almost complete tool for the evaluation of dysarthria. METHODS: A single-center study adapted and validated the Dysarthria Clinical Evaluation Battery BECD 2019 in 135 dysarthric patients and 135 adult controls at different stages. RESULTS: Comparison of scores between all samples showed significance, hence the sensitivity of the tool. Construct validity was carried out with the help of expert neurologists and speech therapists. Cronbach's alpha coefficient revealed a value of 0.7, indicating good internal consistency of the scale. The ROC curves of the different tests guided us in leaving the same threshold scores of the original battery. CONCLUSION: Our study provided a dysarthria assessment tool, adapted to the Tunisian context, promoting a standardized clinical evaluation in order to harmonize communication amongclinicians.