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To poach a little on Daniel Kidd's promise to provide more information on the speech enhancement device his wife tried out, I will describe a demonstration of the same device at our support group last evening. Doug Devries, who has undertaken a self-imposed mission to promote the application of technology to improve communication for people with impairments, learned of a new product designed to enhance the comprehensiblity of people whose speech is impaired by stroke, PD, and similar conditions. He obtained the loan of a demo unit from the manufacturer and took it around to several acquaintances with speech problems to try out. He then brought it to the meeting, and some of the same people, and others present, demonstrated it for us. It worked best for those whose speech is merely very soft, less well for those who run their words together, and less well yet for those who mangle the sounds they make, as might be expected. The wife of a man who gave a demonstration said she felt its biggest help was in reducing the strain on a speaker struggling to articulate and project, too. I will testify that it reduced the strain on his listeners. The device consists of a special microphone held, by means of a frame resting on the patient's head, directly in front of the lips. The mike is connected to a box 30.5 cm x 20.3 cm x 6.4 cm (12"x8"x2.5") that weighs 1.8 kg (4 lbs) containing a speaker,the electronics, and rechargeable batteries. The price of this unit (there are other models) is $1449. It works by electronically improving the selectivity of amplifying the patient's voice relative to background noise. It is meant for portability and continous use. The vendor is: Electronic Speech Enhancement Inc. 1115 Ridge Road St. Louis, MO 63021 Phone (314) 394-0770 FAX (314) 394-9442 They offer a demo tape for $10. I think the device would enhance the lives of many. I hope there will be more developments along these lines. Dick Lacey [log in to unmask]