When your infant has childhood dysarthria, their motor speech can be significantly impacted. Normally, when this occurs, it is because the muscles that control the motor speech are damaged. What is it that causes this condition? Based on information from ASHA, people who have this condition will have weak respiratory and mouth muscles. This can later have an impact on how well they can talk. Unfortunately, the more severe cases of this condition mean that the individuals can’t move their mouth at all.
Spotting this in an infant may not be as simple as with older children. In fact, you may not even know that your baby has childhood dysarthria until they start talking. During this time, they will display some classic signs that they have this condition. Some of the signs that your child has dysarthria include:
The severity of the symptoms will depend on the location of the damage in the nerves or muscle. As your child starts talking, you may start to notice this condition become more prevalent than before. It may appear that your child either speaks too fast or that they speak at a slower pace. This happens because of the facial muscles being injured. In some cases, it may lead to problems with swallowing and feeding. You may also notice that your child drools excessively.
There are a few different reasons why children experience dysarthria. The condition has a strong impact on the nervous system, and those who develop it may have it as a result of a brain injury. In some cases, cerebral palsy is the reason behind the dysarthria. In fact, many of the children who get diagnosed with dysarthria will also have cerebral palsy. There are a number of reasons why adults may have this condition, but these reasons are often different from why it occurs in children.
A lot of the treatment options depend on the severity of the birth injury. Typically, doctors will order oral motor strengthening exercises through cognitive restructuring or neuro-musculature electrical stimulation. In the last few years, medical researchers have developed a new method known as the Lee Silverman Voice Treatment (LSVT) speech and motor learning.
In general, when a child experiences dysarthria, there are a couple of different outcomes. Depending on the severity, the condition could improve, worsen, or remain the same. Part of it depends on the amount of damage done to the nervous system. In children who may have experienced a brain injury, may be able to recover reasonably well from dysarthria. However, there are cases in which they won’t recover fully because the condition is more severe. If your child suffered from dysarthria due to a birth injury, you may be entitled to compensation by filing a lawsuit. It’s important to discuss your case with a professional.
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