This speech disorder develops from problems of the muscles used for speech such as the vocal folds, tongue, lips and the diaphragm. This can either be the result of weak muscles that are used for speech or the inability to control the muscles effectively. These affected individuals often produce speech that is either slow or fast and slurred which makes it difficult to comprehend. The severity of this condition is usually based on the part of the nervous system that is affected.
Causes
These affected individual present difficulty with the movement of the muscles that control the speech such as the mouth, upper respiratory system and the face. This can occur at the birth as the result of damage to the brain such as cerebral palsy. It can also develop later in the individual’s life as the result of conditions that impairs the nervous system such as brain injury, parkinson’s disease, wilson’s disease, head injury, multiple sclerosis, tumors and stroke. Certain medications and sedatives can also cause dysarthria. Whether the affected individual can improve with speech therapy is based on the extent of brain damage. Although some of the cases may remain stable, others may deteriorate gradually.
Symptoms
Some of the common symptoms of dysarthria include slow speech, speech with mumbling quality, slurred speech, abnormal pitch when talking, changes in the voice such as hoarseness, monotone speech, difficulty with swallowing that can result in drooling and problem with the movement of the tongue or the facial muscles. It may be difficult trying to understand these individual as some cases may only be able to produce short phrases or single words. Dysarthria can also be an indication of a serious underlying condition and hence individuals experiencing the sudden onset of unexplained changes with speech should have it evaluated by the physician.
Diagnosis
The speech difficulties can be evaluated by the speech-language pathologist who can determine the type of dysarthria. This specialist will assess the movement of the lips, tongue and various other factors that determines] the voice quality. Additional tests can include brain and nerve studies to measure the electrical activity of the brain, blood and urine tests to determine whether an infection or inflammatory disease is the cause. A lumbar puncture (spinal tap) can detect problems of the central nervous system or cancers of the brain and the spinal cord.
Treatment
This usually is based on the underlying cause of the problem, the type of dysarthria and the severity of the condition. The speech-language pathologist may try to strengthen the muscles for speech, improve the tongue and lip movement and to slow the rate of speech. When speech therapy is not effective, an alternative communication method may be used that includes gestures, visual cues and computer-based technology.
References
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dysarthria/basics/treatment/con-20035008
http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/dysarthria/
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/dysarthria/Pages/Introduction.aspx
