The effectiveness of Lee Silverman Voice Treatment therapy issued interactively through an iPad device: a non-inferiority study.

Introduction This study compared the differences in recorded speech variables between people treated with conventional 'in person' Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) and those treated remotely via iPad-based 'Facetime'. Method Eight participants were selected for the iPad LSVT, and 21 similarly matched subjects were selected from existing data to form the 'in person' group. Participants in both groups had diagnosed idiopathic Parkinson's disease and moderate hypokinetic dysarthria. Eighteen sessions of prescribed LSVT comprising a pre-treatment assessment, 16 treatment sessions, and a six months' post-treatment assessment were administered for each person. In both groups, pre- and post-treatment assessments were conducted face-to-face. Performance measures were recorded during assessment and treatment. Average measures were determined for all tasks at all time points and a summary outcome variable was composed from across-task performance. Results Non-inferiority testing confirmed that iPad LSVT was non-inferior in treating all LSVT task 3 variables except generating words, with the 90% upper confidence intervals (CI) lying between the non-inferiority margin of ± 2.25 and zero. The iPad was superior in treating the task 3 rainbow reading passage and describing motor task variables with upper and lower 90% CI values being negative. The improvement in the summary outcome variable score was also superior in the iPad group. Discussion Non-inferiority testing implies that the iPad LSVT is non-inferior in treating task three variables when compared to traditional LSVT. The study supports further development of remote delivery solutions involving the Apple iPad and 'Facetime' system as a means of improving access to services and the participant's experience.