About Beckman Oral Motor Intervention

"Oral motor" has been defined in a variety of ways. Many of the strategies of the 1950s and '60s were primarily stimulation techniques, such as brushing (pressure massage), icing (thermal stimulation), quick stretch (tapping), and vibration (manual and mechanical). These strategies have been used by physical and occupational therapists to prepare a muscle area for movement. These strategies cannot change the range of movement of a muscle or the strength of a muscle without additional muscle movement. Other oral motor techniques require the individual's cognitive cooperation to follow a command to complete a movement.

But what if the individual cannot cooperate cognitively or, due to significant motoric involvement, cannot follow the therapist's verbal directive to "lick your lips," "move your tongue up toward your nose," or "round and spread your lips?" Many individuals with impaired oral motor skills are not able to follow a command for oral movement. To better serve such individuals, Debra Beckman has, since 1975, worked to develop these specific interventions, which provide assisted movement to activate muscle contraction and movement against resistance to build strength. The focus of these interventions is to increase functional responses to pressure and movement, range, strength, variety, and control of movement for the lips, cheeks, jaw, and tongue.

The interventions needed are determined by an assessment, the Beckman Oral Motor Protocol, which uses assisted movement and stretch reflexes to quantify response to pressure and movement, range, strength, variety, and control of movement for the lips, cheeks, jaw, tongue, and soft palate. The assessment is based on clinically defined functional parameters of minimal competence and does not require the cognitive participation of the individual. Because these components of movement are functional, not age-specific, the protocol is useful for a wide range of ages (birth to geriatric) and diagnostic categories.