Speech impairments might worry children’s parents, but knowing more about the condition will enable them to assist the child.
Having a speech disorder simply means the child has difficulty in articulation and language use. A particular speech disorder can be as a result of a more severe disorder compounding with other problems.
Types of speech disorders
Articulation disorders: Difficulty pronouncing words correctly (e.g., saying “wabbit” instead of “rabbit”).
Fluency disorders: This is stuttering, whereby the child may repeat the sounds or words.
Resonance disorders: Issues with the pitch or volume of the voice, often because of conditions such as a cleft palate.
Language disorders: Difficulty in understanding or speaking properly, which can influence anything from speaking to obeying instructions.
Causes of Speech Disorders
What causes a speech impediment in a child? Speech difficulty can occur for all sorts of reasons. Some are genetic, or they are inherited. Others are due to delays in development, deafness, or trauma. Occasionally, though, we simply do not know why a child develops a speech disorder. It is simply part of the process by which he or she grows up.
Disfluencies are disorders in which a person repeats a sound, word, or phrase. Stuttering may be the most serious disfluency. It may be caused by:
- Genetic abnormalities
- Emotional stress
- Any trauma to the brain or infection
Other causes include:
- Problems or changes in the structure or shape of the muscles and bones used to make speech sounds. These changes may include cleft palate and tooth problems.
- Damage to parts of the brain or the nerves (such as from cerebral palsy) that control how the muscles work together to create speech.
- Hearing loss.
Voice disorders are caused by problems when air passes from the lungs, through the vocal cords, and then through the throat, nose, mouth, and lips. A voice disorder may be due to:
- Acid from the stomach moving upward (GERD)
- Cancer of the throat
- Cleft palate or other problems with the palate
- Conditions that damage the nerves that supply the muscles of the vocal cords
- Laryngeal webs or clefts (a birth defect in which a thin layer of tissue is between the vocal cords)
- Noncancerous growths (polyps, nodules, cysts, granulomas, papillomas, or ulcers) on the vocal cords
- Overuse of the vocal cords from screaming, constantly clearing the throat, or singing
- Hearing loss
Symptoms and Early Identification
Some of the warning signs that can be seen in early stages of a speech disorder include having trouble making sounds, not talking as much as other kids at their age, or becoming upset when they cannot express ideas. Parents will also be interested in observing things such as whether or not their child has difficulty with a simple direction or if their speech is not progressing as normally as it should.
DISFLUENCY
Stuttering is the most common type of disfluency.
Symptoms of disfluency can include:
- Repetition of sounds, words, or parts of words or phrases after age 4 (I want…I want my doll. I…I see you.)
- Putting in (interjecting) extra sounds or words (We went to the…uh…store.)
- Making words longer
- Pausing during a sentence or words, often with the lips together
- Tension in the voice or sounds
- Frustration with attempts to communicate
- Head jerking while talking
- Eye blinking while talking
- Embarrassment with speech
Speech disorders in children treatment Options
Speech-language therapy: Therapy focuses on improving speech sound production, fluency, and language skills.
Early intervention: The sooner therapy begins, the better the outcomes.
Individualized treatment plans: Treatment plans are tailored to the specific needs of each child
And the best part is, there are tons and tons of things to treat speech disorders in children. One of the most utilized treatments is speech therapy, which includes seeing an expert who will work with your child on doing exercises to get his or her speech corrected. There are even some cases when they would need to have other treatments, like hearing aids or surgery, depending on what’s affecting the problem.
Exams and Tests
Your health care provider will ask about your child’s developmental and family history. The provider will do some neurological screening and check for:
- Fluency of speech
- Any emotional stress
- Any underlying condition
- Effect of speech disorder on daily life
The Importance of Early Intervention
Early intervention can be life-altering. The earlier you get help for speech challenges, the better. Early intervention can assist children in developing strong communication skills, which are so crucial to their school and life achievement. Treatment is best started during the toddler or preschool years. These years are a critical period of normal language learning. The early skills needed for normal speech and language development can be tested even in infants. At that age, the speech-language pathologist works with the parents on stimulating speech and language development in the home. Active treatment in the form of individual therapy usually starts between the ages of 2 and 4 years.
Resources for Parents
How to treat speech disorders in child? There are tons of resources out there for parents who are concerned about their child’s speech. From local speech therapists to online support groups. Eve child rehabilitation centre provide specialized medical care tailored to your child’s unique needs. Our expert team offers services including speech therapy, behavioral therapy, occupational therapy, psychological assessments, and developmental interventions to support their overall well-being
Conclusion
Ultimately, if you can get the impression that your child might have a speech disorder, it’s essential to speak with an expert. At EVE Child Rehabilitation Centre, we empower children with the tools they need to overcome challenges and lead fulfilling lives. The sooner you act, the better, and the proper guidance can make all the difference to your child’s life. Either speech therapy or a little extra patience, it’s simply all about providing the best possible opportunity for your little one to communicate and be heard.
Frequently Asked Questions
Speech disorders are typically treated through speech-language therapy tailored to the individual’s specific needs.
A child with speech difficulties should receive early intervention from a qualified speech-language pathologist.
The most common speech disorder in children is articulation disorder.
Speech sound disorder is treated using targeted speech therapy exercises to improve pronunciation and clarity.