Aphasia/Dysphasia
Aphasia is a communication disability which occurs when the communication centres of the brain are damaged. It is usually caused by stroke, but can also be caused by brain haemorrhage, head injury or tumours. Each person with aphasia experiences it differently. Some people cannot speak at all; some people have just a few words. Others can no longer read, write or use numbers.
Speech and Language Therapists will work with people with aphasia to improve their language skills and/or to increase their ability to take part in social interactions.
Dysarthria
Dysarthria happens when a stroke or other neurological condition causes weakness of the muscles you use to speak. This may affect the muscles you use to move your tongue, lips or mouth, control your breathing when you speak or produce your voice. It affects people after brain injury or those with neurological conditions, such as: Parkinson’s, Motor Neurone Disease, or Multiple Sclerosis.
Speech and Language Therapists will work with people with dysarthria to increase their intelligibility through speech exercises and/or to increase their ability to communicate using other forms of communication.
Dysfluency (stammering)
Stammering – or stuttering – is a relatively common speech problem in childhood but can also persist into adulthood. It is characterised by: the repetition of sounds or syllables , prolonging sounds , or pausing or 'blocking'. It usually occurs at the beginning of speech, and people will often avoid certain words or speaking situations to try to hide it. Stammering varies in severity from person to person. A person might find that they have periods of stammering followed by times when they speak relatively fluently.
Definition taken from: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Stammering/Pages/Introduction.aspx
Useful links
- Dyscover: http://dyscover.org.uk
- MND Association: www.mndassociation.org
- Multiple Sclerosis Society: www.mssociety.org.uk
- Parkinsons UK: www.parkinsons.org.uk
- Stroke Association: www.stroke.org.uk
- The British Stammering Association: www.stammering.org