Techniques & Approaches Flashcards
7 cards from real CMT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Techniques & Approaches flashcards as text
A therapist uses electromyographic (EMG) biofeedback during a swallow exercise. The primary purpose is to:
Answer: Provide real-time visual feedback of muscle activation to help the patient modify swallow patterns
EMG biofeedback gives patients immediate visual data on muscle activity, accelerating awareness and voluntary control of correct swallow muscle firing.
During a myofunctional session, a therapist introduces 'tongue twisters' and rapid alternating motion (RAM) tasks. These exercises primarily target:
Answer: Tongue tip agility and dissociation from the jaw
Rapid alternating motion drills train tongue tip speed, precision, and independence from jaw movement—key for both articulation and swallow coordination.
The 'Resting tongue posture maintenance exercise' asks a patient to hold the tongue to the palate while opening the jaw 1–2 cm. The primary aim of this variation is to:
Answer: Train tongue-jaw dissociation so the tongue stays up even as the jaw opens
Opening the jaw while holding the tongue up reinforces independent tongue-palate contact without dependence on mandibular support.
A 7-year-old patient with a digit-sucking habit combined with a tongue thrust is most appropriately treated using which combined approach?
Answer: Habit elimination counseling and reward systems alongside myofunctional exercises
Behavior-based habit elimination (reward systems, awareness building) combined with simultaneous myofunctional exercises addresses both the habit etiology and resultant muscle patterns.
Which myofunctional exercise specifically targets the lateral edges of the tongue to improve lateral swallow containment and reduce food spillage off the sides of the tongue?
Answer: Lateral tongue press against the inner cheek
Pressing the lateral tongue edges against the inner cheek builds lateral tongue tone, improving the tongue's ability to form a sealed trough during the oral phase of swallowing.
A myofunctional therapist is working with a post-glossectomy patient. The most appropriate therapeutic modification is to:
Answer: Adapt exercises to maximize residual tongue function using compensatory postures and prosthetic supports
Post-glossectomy therapy adapts standard techniques using compensatory strategies and may incorporate palatal augmentation prostheses to optimize residual function.
When is it appropriate for a myofunctional therapist to use neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) as an adjunct technique?
Answer: When a patient has significant hypotonia or neurological weakness limiting voluntary muscle activation for exercise
NMES is an adjunct for patients whose neurological conditions or severe hypotonia prevent adequate voluntary activation, helping initiate muscle contractions that can then be reinforced with active exercise.