Treatment Planning & Intervention Strategies Flashcards

A patient demonstrates correct tongue posture and swallowing during therapy sessions but reports relapsing into old patterns after several months of discharge. What does this most likely indicate?

Answer: Insufficient automaticity was achieved before discharge; the patient needed extended maintenance monitoring

Relapse after discharge indicates that correct patterns had not fully transitioned to unconscious competence before the maintenance phase ended, suggesting premature discontinuation of monitoring.

Which of the following home program designs is MOST likely to promote long-term carryover in a pediatric patient aged 8?

Answer: Three simple, gamified exercises integrated into existing daily routines such as tooth brushing

Attaching a small number of age-appropriate exercises to existing routines like tooth brushing leverages habit stacking and reduces the burden of compliance for children.

When a COM clinician re-evaluates a patient mid-treatment and finds that a new goal has emerged (e.g., lip incompetence not initially noted), the appropriate action is to:

Answer: Document the new finding, update the treatment plan to incorporate the new goal, and discuss the change with the patient and referring provider

Dynamic treatment planning requires updating goals as new clinical findings emerge, with transparent communication to the patient and referring provider about plan modifications.

A patient with a tongue thrust also has a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder with sensory sensitivities. Which treatment planning modification is MOST important?

Answer: Adapt pacing, sensory input types, and exercise textures to the patient's sensory profile, and coordinate with the patient's occupational therapist

Sensory processing differences in ASD require individualized adaptations to exercise materials and pacing, and occupational therapy coordination ensures sensory strategies are aligned.

Which statement BEST reflects the evidence-based role of lip seal taping in a COM treatment plan?

Answer: Lip seal taping may be used as an adjunct at night to encourage nasal breathing after the patient demonstrates adequate nasal airway patency and comfortable lip approximation

Lip taping is an adjunct tool used after verifying a patent nasal airway and comfortable lip closure; it reinforces nasal breathing during sleep but does not substitute for active exercise-based therapy.

In a treatment plan for a patient with an open bite maintained by a tongue thrust, realistic closure of the open bite through myofunctional therapy alone can be expected:

Answer: Only in growing patients where dental and skeletal adaptation is still possible; adults typically require orthodontic intervention as well

In growing children, eliminating a tongue thrust can allow the open bite to close through natural dentoalveolar adaptation, whereas adults typically need orthodontic correction in addition to myofunctional therapy.

A COM clinician is planning treatment for a patient referred post-frenuloplasty. When should active tongue elevation exercises be introduced after the surgical release?

Answer: After the surgical site has healed sufficiently and the surgeon has cleared the patient for active range-of-motion exercises, typically within 2–4 weeks

Post-frenuloplasty exercises are introduced once the surgeon clears the patient for active motion, typically within 2–4 weeks, to maximize lingual range of motion and prevent restrictive scar formation.