Long-term follow-up of a behavioral treatment for stuttering in children.

Gaylord-Ross et al. (1995) checked back on seven kids who had finished a behavioral stuttering program. They counted stuttered words during normal conversation 3.5 years after treatment ended.

The team wanted to know if brief fluency training could stick long-term without weekly therapy.

Six of the seven children still spoke with 3% or fewer stuttered words. One child had crept up a little, but even that child stayed far below where they started.

The gains held without extra clinic visits.

Anderson et al. (2002) saw the opposite pattern. Their behavioral package for roller-skaters faded within six months. The difference: athletes got no booster sessions, while the stuttering kids had parents who coached fluent speech every day.

Zigler et al. (1989) ran an earlier trial on teens and adults. Both intensive and spaced fluency training worked, yet some loss showed up after one year. The 1995 kids kept stronger control, hinting that younger age or parent help may lock in skills.

Durand et al. (1990) tracked language gains for 26–57 months and found the same durable drop in echolalia. Together these studies show behavioral language treatments can last years when caregivers keep using the cues.

If you treat stuttering, teach parents the cue system before you discharge. A single training block plus daily home practice kept six of seven kids fluent for over three years. Schedule a quick check-in at six and twelve months, but daily caregiver use may be the real maintenance tool.