What Treatment Works for Children With Selective Mutism?

What Treatment Works for Children With Selective Mutism? A Treatment Pilot Study

The purpose of this pilot study is to explore the outcome of a manual based treatment for children with Selective Mutism

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Selective Mutism
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Interventions at home, in the kindergarten/school

Detailed Description

Objectives:

The main aim of this pilot study is to increase our knowledge on interventions for Selective Mutism (SM), a childhood condition characterized by a persistent lack of speech in specific situations despite the ability to comprehend and use language. A survey on the treatment offered this group in Norway 1997-2000 showed great variations in therapeutic approach and the overall outcome was poor. Correspondent with the notion of SM as a variant of social anxiety, several case studies have described successful treatments using behaviour techniques (BT's) such as stimulus fading and shaping. In addition, the author's clinical experience is that "defocusing in communication" (e.g. regulation of gaze contact; sitting beside instead of in front of the child, avoiding direct questioning, talking about interesting but impersonal topics) represents another important toil in getting the mute child to start talking. However, to date there are no randomized controlled SM treatment studies, and in fact we know little of what works best to help these children. Our research group has developed an assessment- and treatment manual for children with SM.

In this exploring pilot study referred children with SM aged 3-5 years (n=7) will be given an intervention according to the treatment manual. The intervention is conducted at home and in the kindergarten or at school and includes stimulus fading techniques with weekly sessions. Therapists will be members of the research group or local therapist under supervision.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 7
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Norway
  • Oslo, Norway, 0484
    • Centre for Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Eastern and Southern Norway

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 3 years to 9 years (Child)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Children with a clinical diagnosis of Selective Mutism (SM)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Children with Mental Retardation (IQ<50)
• Children with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD)
• Children with SM in active treatment
• Children with SM on medication
• Children whose parents are non-Norwegian speaking

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Other: 1 Behavioral intervention; Behavioral intervention in all seven subjects Weekly sessions in the home and the kindergarten using defocused communication and stimulus fading interventions	Behavioral: Interventions at home, in the kindergarten/school; Weekly interventions including behavior techniques (stimulus fading); Other Names: Stimulus fading interventions

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
School Speech Questionnaire (SSQ)	SSQ is a teacher-report measure assessing the frequency of the child's speaking behaviour at school. It is a 9-item questionnaire. Each item has four possible responses, ranging 0 (never), 1 (seldom), 2 (often) and 3 (always). The standard sum score is added up from the six questions (as defined by its author Lindsey Bergman) and then divided by 6 to make up a corresponding factor score ranging from 0-3.(worst value=0 and best value=3)	6 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Number of Children Who Obtained the Different Treatment Modules (Level of Speaking;Level 1 Through to 6)	6 Predefined treatment goals reflecting speaking levels from 1 through to 6. 1: Speaks to the therapist(T) in a separate room in the kindergarten with parent (P) present. 2: Speaks to T in a separate room without P. 3: Speaks to a teacher in a separate room with T present. 4: Speaks to other teachers in a separate room with T present. 5: Speaks to teachers in some kindergarten settings without T present. 6: Speaks to teachers in all settings in kindergarten without T present. Each child receives one score at end of treatment according to their acquired level (worst value=1, best value =6)	6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Regionsenter for barn og unges psykiske helse
• Collaborators: Ullevaal University Hospital
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Hanne Kristensen, Ph.D., Centre of child and adolescent mental health, Eastern and Southern Norway

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: November 1, 2007
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 1, 2008
• Study Completion (Actual): December 1, 2008

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 6, 2007
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 6, 2007
• First Posted (Estimate): November 7, 2007

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): November 25, 2010
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 18, 2010
• Last Verified: November 1, 2010

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Treatment; Children; Selective mutism
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Nervous System Diseases; Neurologic Manifestations; Neurobehavioral Manifestations; Neurodevelopmental Disorders; Language Disorders; Communication Disorders; Speech Disorders; Mutism
• Other Study ID Numbers: 1.2006.2116; 15968 (Other Identifier: Reg. Committee for medical & health research ethics, Norway)