When a person is unable to produce speech sounds correctly or fluently or has problems with his or her voice, then he or she has a speech disorder. Difficulties in pronouncing the sounds or articulation disorders and stuttering are examples of speech disorders.
When a person has trouble understanding the others (receptive language) or sharing thoughts, ideas, and feelings completely (expressive language), then he or she has a language disorder. A stroke can result in aphasia or a language disorder.
Both children and adults can have speech and language disorders. They can occur as a result of a medical problem or have no known cause.
DSHC has professional Speech-Language Pathologists who provide complete care (Evaluation & Treatment) for various Speech and Language problems for both Adults and Children.
Speech and language problems can be treated by a therapeutic approach which will have a therapy plan with pre-set goals on a timely basis. It includes behavioural interventions, Computer Based Instructions, Alternative and Augmentative Communication. There are a number of different approaches and strategies for individuals with speech-language disorders. Interventions can vary along a continuum of naturalness, ranging from contrived or drill-based activities in a therapy room (clinician directed) to activities that model play or other everyday activities in more natural settings (child-centred), to those that use activities and settings that combine both approaches (hybrid).
Stuttering causes separation in the flow of the conversation or the speech. It is a Speech disorder which will disrupt the words and sounds. It causes involuntary repetition or prolongation of sounds. Stuttering is an audible occurrence which is not readily controlled.
Cluttering is a speech and language disorder which affects the ability of communication with a very fast rate of speech. It results in rapid, unorganized and often unintelligible speech. Cluttering makes the person talk very fast and creates a jerky in speech.
Articulation is a speech disorder in which a person feels difficulty in articulating the specific sounds. Children generally use a phonological process to produce sound patterns. Due to the Articulation problem, some children will not be able to spell or talk properly. If a child is not able to provide the pronounciation with the right word, then Audiologists will give few speech techniques which will help the child to articulate the words which have been missing. Speech problems might includes substitutions, omissions, additions or distortions of the words and sentences. It is the most common problem seen in children.
Voice Disorder is a speech disorder that affects the ability of a person to speak normally. A voice disorder is present when there is a problem with the pitch, volume, tone and other vocal problems. This voice disorder appears when vocal cords don't vibrate normally. The extra presence of air in the vocal cords leads to the disruptions in the voice box which leads to a disturbance in the voice. Voice disorder includes other disorders includes laryngitis, paralyzed vocal cords, and a nerve problem. There are a few symptoms to identify voice disorder like hoarseness, sound strained or choppy, pain or lump in the throat, quivering sound, weak, whispery, or breathy and many others. Many disorders can be cured with treatment and speech therapies. Voice therapy will help to improve the way to produce and get habituated with the voice. If you find any such symptoms, visit hearing solutions to attend therapy by a professional speech therapist.
Dysarthria is a speech disorder which is caused due to weakness in the muscles. Weakness in the muscles is due to the damage in the brain after meeting with a stroke or an accident. It is a motor speech disorder which is directly connected to the muscles contractions. Generally, we use muscles to talk like the muscles of the face, lips, tongue and throat will not respond appropriately. This weakness in the muscles will make a person have a slurred speech or mumbles speech, either speak very fast or very slow.
A person with Dysarthria will not be able to move the tongue, lips, jaw etc. Sometimes the voice will change completely or changes to hoarse or breathy, stuffy nose etc.
Aphasia is a language impairment that affects the production of speech and also the ability to read and write. According to the NAA, National Aphasia Association about 25% to 40% of people suffer from an Aphasia after stroke.
Aphasia is generally seen in the people who met with an injury to the brain or any head/brain traumas. Aphasia also affects the brain's ability to recognise the objects. A person will also face difficulty in the arrangement of the words, or the sentences. They face a lot of problem in communicating with others.
Swallowing difficulty is an inability to swallow foods or any liquids with ease. Swallowing problem is quite common in both the adults and the children. Swallowing Disorder is also known as Dysphagia. It is a condition where the brain, nerves and other muscular valves are constrained to open the esophagus or avoid swallowing the food or liquids. Swallowing difficulties will lead to malnutrition and dehydration. It also leads to sudden weight loss. Swallowing disorder will allow the sticking of the food in the throat and the chest which leads to frequent Heartburn and formation of acid in the stomach, coughing gagging and many more. Difficulty in Swallowing can also lead to choking to the oesophagus which leads to pain in the throat.
Autism or Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) is a language disorder where a child will not be able to understand the speech and any other non-verbal communications. People with ASD often demonstrate restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped interests or patterns of behaviour. Autism is a challenge which has its own strengths and challenges. High intellectual ability is considered to be a strength while a disability to communicate to others are considered to be a weakness. Mostly a child with Autism will face a lot of challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviours, speech and nonverbal communication.
Autism will affect sensitives and other medical issues. It is a language disorder which needs a full time by speech experts. Speech therapists will give therapies to help them think and feel. A therapy for gestures, facial expressions, and touch are developed by the speech therapists.
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is known as ADHD. ADHD is one of the common disorder found in children. According to research, 8.4% of children and 2.5 % of adults are identified with ADHD. A person with ADHD will not be able to keep focus or showcases extra movements in fixing the things or take the decisions Impulsively.
ADHD is a major impairment of the brain's executive functions. People have a stigma that ADHD is a mental illness, it is neither a behavioural disorder nor any disability. It is a development impairment of the brain's self-management system. It leads to facing trouble with impulse-control, focusing, and organization.
Communication Disorders are the most common disorders found in children. A child will face a lot of difficulty in communicating with others. Such children will not be able to understand the sounds of the speech and always struggle with the word choice, word order and sentence structures. Communication disorder also includes Expressive Language Disorder, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Receptive-Expressive Language Disorder, and Autism. A communication disorder is not a mental retardation condition or any neurological disorder. Communication Disorders are because of gene problems, environmental factors, inappropriate development of the brain, exposures to toxins, alcohols or drugs during pregnancy etc.
