Motor Speech Disorders
There are several types of different Dysarthria's and Apraxia's that are all neurologially based. Children and adults can have any of them. Should you find yourself or your child with a diagnosis of a what we call a Dysarthria or an Apriaxa, the next thing you should do is make an appointment with a neurologist if this is a new diagnosis b/c there may be more going on than the eye can or the throat can hear.
The dysarthrias in children have many different causes, including cerbral palsy, neonatal stroke and traumatic brain injury. As described above, something that may have been obvious to the eye. In affected individuals the speech mechanism, including the muscles of respiration, may be paralysed, weak or poorly co-ordinated. The dysarthrias can affect all motor speech processes: breathing, producing sounds in the larynx, articulation, resonance, and the 'prosody' or rhythm of speech.
Any sudden change in an adult or a child needs to be seen not only by a Dr. but also by a Speech Language Pathologist. SLP's are most likely are the first ones to diagnose difficulties with the brain based on voice/speech changes as they are connected to the brain.
The dysarthrias in children have many different causes, including cerbral palsy, neonatal stroke and traumatic brain injury. As described above, something that may have been obvious to the eye. In affected individuals the speech mechanism, including the muscles of respiration, may be paralysed, weak or poorly co-ordinated. The dysarthrias can affect all motor speech processes: breathing, producing sounds in the larynx, articulation, resonance, and the 'prosody' or rhythm of speech.
Any sudden change in an adult or a child needs to be seen not only by a Dr. but also by a Speech Language Pathologist. SLP's are most likely are the first ones to diagnose difficulties with the brain based on voice/speech changes as they are connected to the brain.
