The severity of the speech disorder can vary greatly. They range from mild speech development disorders to written language disorders and deaf-muteness.
Speech disorders have different underlying causes depending on their form. Speech development disorders are often based on hearing disorders. For example, long-lasting middle ear infections or permanent hearing disorders between the second and third year of life can hinder speech development. As those affected cannot hear what is being said, they do not learn the language.
Genetic, psychological and social factors also impair language development. Speech impairment often occurs in the various forms of dementia.
Other illnesses, such as epilepsy, can also be accompanied by speech disorders. Written language disorders such as dyslexia or dysgraphia are mainly caused by a lack of reading and writing training. However, they can also be caused by brain damage following a traumatic brain injury or stroke. The same applies to speech comprehension disorders and aphasia.
The most common cause of aphasia is trauma-related damage to the brain or brain tumors. Mental and physical developmental delays can also lead to a delay in speech development or the absence of speech. Developmental delays include mental disabilities, birth trauma or early childhood damage of a psychological nature.
There are different types of speech disorder:
Depending on the degree of severity, aphasia affects speech form, word meanings, vocabulary, sentence formation or speech sounds. The disorders occur alone or in combination.
Experts also refer to the mild form of aphasia as dysphasia. Aphasics are unable to express their thoughts and feelings correctly. They often do not realize that the words they choose do not correspond to their thoughts. They do not fully grasp the meaning of what they hear or write.
Dyslexia, on the other hand, is the inability to read or understand what has been read. Neither hearing nor vision are affected here. People with dyslexia cannot read or can only read very slowly. They are unable to read aloud fluently. They often slip in the line or mix up letters.
The inability to write words and texts is dysgraphia. Those affected have difficulty writing, even though they are intellectually and motorically capable of doing so. Those who suffer from dysgrammatism are unable to form grammatically correct sentences according to their age.
For example, people with dysgrammatism do not understand that verbs are conjugated depending on the subject. For example, instead of saying "you stand" in sentences, they say "you stand". They also form the plural of words incorrectly or place the verb in the wrong position in the sentence. "I would like an ice cream." then becomes "I would like ice cream.".
Word deafness is not deafness in the true sense of the word. Those affected perceive and distinguish the speech sounds, but cannot understand them as such. The "inner speech" and therefore also the ability to write or read is hardly impaired.
It is particularly difficult to diagnose speech disorders in childhood. Language development varies from child to child. Many abnormalities even themselves out in the first few years of life.
Various tests and screenings are available to doctors to check the age-appropriate level of language development. These relate to different areas of language such as vocabulary or grammar. Video recordings can also be used to precisely analyze language skills.
Children's language tests help to record different aspects of language development @ ChasingMagic/peopleimages.com /AdobeStock
If the level of development is conspicuous, hearing tests are usually carried out to rule out a lack of hearing. There are also various tests to diagnose speech disorders in adults.
For example, the Aachen Aphasia Test (AAT) is used if aphasia is suspected. This makes it possible to diagnose the various forms of speech disorder and their respective severity.
Regardless of the underlying cause of the speech disorder, treatment usually consists of speech therapy. Speech therapists or specially trained speech therapists carry this out.
Speech development disorders in children are treated in a playful way. Affected children are given special exercises to encourage them to speak correctly.
It is advisable to startspeech therapy from the age of 2, as this is when the first signs of speech development disorders become apparent @ Africa Studio /AdobeStock
However, treatment should not take place exclusively in the speech therapy practice. In everyday life, the child's contacts must ensure that the child speaks correctly. They should also actively encourage the child to speak. Singing or reading together also promotes speech development. As speech development and motor skills are closely linked, occupational therapy can be a useful complementary treatment.
For adults with speech disorders, the focus is on (re)activating speech. Speech therapists make use of the brain's pronounced ability to learn.
This enables the patient to regain lost skills. If this is not possible, therapists practise other verbal and non-verbal communication strategies. This enables the patient to express themselves without using spoken language.
The prognosis depends on the type and cause of the disorder. Speech development disorders in children can be treated well with early therapy.
In many cases, however, the speech ability of dementia patients steadily declines despite therapeutic support. As a general rule, early diagnosis with prompt speech therapy significantly improves the prognosis.
The Leading Medicine Guide's quality assurance is ensured by the following acceptance prerequisites.
