What is dysarthria?
Impairment of the muscles for speech movement is known as dysarthria, or motor speech impairment. These will include the muscles in the face, tongue, and throat area. Muscles can become impaired due to brain injury or injury directly to the muscles used for speech.
Symptoms
Motor speech impairment can result in:
- Slurred speech
- Speaking softly or slowly
- Speaking rapidly
- Changes to speech naturalness
- Changes to voice quality or resonance
The impact of dysarthria
Like many other communication impairments. The impact of dysarthria can be wide. For example, dysarthria can make someone less clear in conversation, or difficultly being understood over the phone. Everyone experiences dysarthria differently, and requires a tailored treatment program to improve the clarity of their communication.
What Hobart Speech Pathology offers
We provide assessment and intervention of your motor speech abilities to help improve your functional and social communication:
- Dysarthria assessment
- Dysarthria therapy
- Helping to build confidence in talking
- Helping to improve social communication
- Working in your communication environment
- Set up and training with basic or high-tech communication devices
- Lee Silverman Voice Therapy (Accredited LSVT Provider)
