BACKGROUND: This study seeks to identify those factors that influence the pre-therapeutic speech intelligibility in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). METHOD: A group of 172 patients (125 males, 47 females, mean age = 61 +/- 11 a) with different OSCC stages ranging from T1 to T4 and N0 to N2 was examined for their speech intelligibility using a computerized measuring tool, and compared to a healthy reference group (30 males, 10 females, mean age = 59 +/- 12 a). RESULTS: It was found that the pre-therapeutic speech intelligibility in patients with OSCC is decreased when compared to a healthy collective. Two demographic factors that influence speech intelligibility could be identified: sex and age. It was determined that the only disease-related factor that influences speech intelligibility before therapy is the location of the tumor. CONCLUSION: The results of this study reveal that a preoperative speech intelligibility impairment in patients suffering from OSCC occurs independent of tumor stage, size of the tumor and infiltration status.
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