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Dysarthria are all kinds of problems that relate to incorrect articulation of speech. In itself, dysarthria is not a disease, it is a symptom - a very important symptom, because its sudden onset may be associated with a tumor of the central nervous system, as well as with stroke or Lyme disease. What are the causes of dysarthria and when should treatment be sought? How is dysarthria treated?

Contents:

  1. Dyzarthria: symptoms
  2. Dyzartria: types
  3. Dyzartria: causes
  4. Dyzartria: recognition
  5. Dyzarthria: treatment

Dysarthriais a problem that results from disorders of the speech motor apparatus. In the course of dysarthria, the normal mobility of structures involved in the production of speech, such as the vocal folds of the larynx, elements of the palate, tongue or lips, is impaired.

The term comes from Greek, it is derived from the words "dys" (difficult, heavy) and "arthrosis" (articulation). Dysarthria can significantly complicate the life of the experiencing patient - its effect may be that the patient's speech will be incomprehensible to the environment. The effect of such a phenomenon may be a deterioration of the patient's relationship with the family and other people they meet.

In addition, dysarthria can occur in patients who are intellectually efficient - the discomfort they feel, caused by speech disorders, can lead to isolation from people, and even to the development of serious mental disorders, such as depression.

Dyzarthria: symptoms

Speech, characteristic of people with dysarthria, is referred to as dysarthria. Patients may speak slurredly, sometimes even gibberish - it can be extremely difficult to understand what they really mean.

The statements of patients with dysarthria may seem monotonous due to the lack of appropriate voice modulation. Disturbances may also concern the pace of speaking (in the case of dysarthria, speech is usually slower), as well as the volume of spoken words - patients can both speak very quietly, whisper properly, and speak much too loudly than they should in a given situation.

Sometimes patients' speech may resemble that of a cold - this is sometimes referred to as nasal speech.Dysarthria symptoms result from disturbances in the mobility of the structures around the mouth, throat and neck, so patients may also experience problems other than speech disorders. Patients may have difficulty chewing and swallowing food, as well as excessive salivation.

Dyzartria: types

There are several types of dysarthria. The division is based both on minor differences in the clinical picture and on which specific part of the nervous system was damaged. The dysarthria is listed:

  • flaccid (resulting from damage to the V, VII, IX, X, XII cranial nerves or their nuclei in the brain),
  • spastic (occurs in the case of bilateral damage to the cortico-nuclear tract in the brain),
  • hyperkinetic and hypokinetic (occurring in the case of defects in the extrapyramidal system),
  • atactic (resulting from injuries within the cerebellum),
  • mixed (recognized when several types of dysarthria overlap, i.e. when lesions are located in several different regions of the brain).

Dyzartria: causes

The cause of dysarthria can be any conditions that lead to damage to the above-mentioned brain structures and ultimately result in impaired speech motor apparatus, such as:

  • stroke
  • tumors of the central nervous system
  • myasthenia gravis
  • Guillain-Barre team
  • amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • Lyme disease
  • head injury
  • cerebral palsy
  • Parkinson's disease
  • Huntington's disease
  • muscular dystrophy
  • Wilson's disease
  • Tay-Sachs disease
  • increased intracranial pressure
  • hypothermia
  • middle bridge myelinolysis

Dysarthria can also be temporary and result from the measures taken by the patient. This possibility exists especially in the case of taking certain drugs and sedatives.

Dyzartria: recognition

You can check whether the patient has dysarthria by examining the patient's speech. The patient may be asked to do several things, such as:

  • reading some sentences
  • singing
  • blowing out the candle
  • sticking out the tongue
  • counting
  • making different noises

The diagnosis of dysarthria itself is of course important, but it is much more important to find the cause of its occurrence - and this, as mentioned above, can even be a life-threatening condition. They should be concernedarouse especially those cases of dysarthria that appeared suddenly in a completely he althy patient. The complete profile of examinations that will be performed in a patient with dysarthria depends on the suspected etiology of the problem. To find the cause of dysarthria, imaging tests (such as computed tomography of the head or magnetic resonance imaging of this region of the body) can be performed, which can detect foci that indicate a stroke or cancerous lesions. Lumbar punctures (to carry out analyzes of the cerebrospinal fluid), as well as electromyographic (EMG) and electroencephalographic (EEG) tests, as well as blood tests and urine tests can also be used.

Dyzarthria: treatment

Treatment of dysarthria itself - which is actually a symptom of some other disease - is based on exercises that are to improve speech in patients. The purpose of such exercises is to strengthen the muscles involved in the production of speech, and the patients are taught to speak more slowly and clearly. Learning can also include breathing control, which will allow you to both speak more slowly and influence the volume of spoken words.

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Category:

Neurology