Archive for the ‘Stuttering’ Category

Treatments for Stuttering in Children

Tuesday, May 17th, 2011

So what is Stuttering really all about? The following report includes some fascinating information about Stuttering–info you can use, not just the old stuff they used to tell you.

Worried about your child who seem not to outgrow his or her stuttering? Also called stammering, this speech condition have symptoms that include repetition of a word, syllable, or sound while speaking. It also involves trouble starting to speak a word, phrase or sentence. Other symptoms of stuttering include trembling of the jaw or lips, quick and repetitive blinking of the eyes, and tightness or tension of the face and upper part of the body. If your son or daughter suffers from these symptoms, it may be a sign that your kid has failed to outgrow that speech difficulty.

When should you bring your child to a specialist? For children between two to five years old, it is normal for them to stutter as they develop their speaking abilities. That will go away on its own. But if the stammering lasts beyond six months and occurs often with the symptoms mentioned above, then your child needs medical attention. If left untreated, stammering in children may lead to worse symptoms such as emotional problems, avoiding situations when the child has to speak, and poor performance in school.

It is advised that a child with speech problem be checked by a speech pathologist, a medical practitioner trained to diagnose and treat people suffering from speech, language, and voice disorders. During diagnosis, the speech pathologist will ask you about the history of the speech condition, particularly when it started and under what situations. After asking other relevant questions, the speech pathologist will perform a full assessment of the speech and language abilities of your child.

Various treatment methods are available for children with speech difficulty. These treatments only alleviate the condition to reduce stammering?no cure has been invented yet. Therapy can help a lot in keeping developmental stammering from getting in the way of a child’s normal day-to-day life.
Stammering in children is usually treated through informing parents on the best ways to adjust or control their children’s speaking environment. That way, the episodes of stammering will be minimized.

The following are several suggestions for parents like you who are finding ways to treat your child’s speech condition:

? Discuss openly with your child the condition when he or she asks you about it.

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I’m sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

? Avoid encouraging or forcing your child to speak to other people.

? Make sure that you maintain a relaxed environment in your home to give your child enough chance to speak. It would be a lot helpful if you let your child speak without any distraction coming from you or other people at home.

? Be relaxed whenever you speak and do it slowly. That way, your child will learn to imitate the correct way to speak minus the stammering.

? Listen to your child attentively whenever he or she talks to you. Be patient?wait for your kid to complete the words. Avoid completing your child’s thoughts for himself or herself.

? Avoid punishing your child or reacting harshly because of his or her speech disfluency.

A cure for stuttering does not exist. However, as a parent, you can do some ways to help your child improve his or her fluency when speaking.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

The stuttering miracle cure

Tuesday, May 3rd, 2011

People who suffer form stuttering have been looking for the miracle cure for stuttering ever since stuttering was discovered. People have been crossing oceans to find the stuttering miracle cure to no avail. There is o miracle cure for stuttering but there are therapies and treatments that are available for people who suffer stuttering and who are looking for a cure.

For years and years people thought that there is no cure or people would never be able to rid themselves of the stuttering sickness that they endure. Well, like most speech impediments stuttering has a cure though it is not a miracle cure that takes away stuttering overnight rather a series of carefully laid out steps that take time to take effect. Because of the time tolling nature of this cure it is highly recommended for the individuals that are trying to rid themselves of stuttering to be patient and understanding.

The treatments and drugs that can be used to cure stuttering

There is no medicinal cure for stuttering. Since most children develop stuttering at an early age most of them outgrow it before it becomes and actual burden to the child, because of this stuttering in children requires no special therapy and treatments. But in any case that the child reaches the age of five and still has problems regarding their stuttering the parents should see a speech therapist of a developmental pediatrician to consult if the child’s stuttering is still within comfort zones.

In most cases of adult stuttering it has been found that they developed stuttering as children and never outgrew it because of the lack of professional help and treatment.

See how much you can learn about Stuttering when you take a little time to read a well-researched article? Don’t miss out on the rest of this great information.

Experts’ advice

Speech therapists’ claim that good practice can cure people of their stutters even without the help of a trained professional, all they need to do is follow a few simple exercises/ tips to make sure that they out grow the burdens of a stutter.

1. Good posture at all times. Having a god posture is the key to eliminate speech impediments in both young and old. It is particularly effective for people who tend to slur their words when they speak. Slurring of words can be closely associated with stuttering because of the slow production of sounds that words have. Though similar in some aspects some speech therapists’ claim that having a good posture may not be enough to make sure that a person can get rid of their stutter. Though there is scientific basis that relates stuttering to bad posture there is still nothing bad to have you shoulders rolled back and your chin up.

2. Push out your stomach when producing the sounds of the letters b,d,g,k, and v. Some experts say that most of the stuttered on letters are the letters that are listed above, they say that reasons for it is because of the air pushing nature of the sounds of the letters that make it difficult for some people to say correctly thus creating a stuttering effect on the letters and the words containing the letters.

3. Breathing in deeply. Deep breaths are essential to speech because air flow controls the sound production of letters in the words. Keeping your body aligned by breathing in and out properly makes it easier for the body to control the flow of air out of the mouth. Another reason relates to how air relaxes the muscles of our body.

Pressure and anxiety are key factors to stuttering and with more air that we take in the less stressed our muscles become.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Helpful tips on stuttering from stutters

Sunday, April 10th, 2011

When you’re learning about something new, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer amount of relevant information available. This informative article should help you focus on the central points.

Today people need to be mobile and social to cope up with the needs of society. It is very important to deliver one’s message concisely and as briefly as possible to save time and motion. Concepts of how to manage time better are some of the best-selling concepts of the upbeat society. But among us some people suffer from a speech impediment that hinders them from being competitive in the world. Stuttering is one of the most common problems that people face nowadays, young children to working adults stuttering affects people adversely both in school and at work.

People who are suffering from stutters need not despair, there is a way to overcome stuttering and the ways to overcome it are from people who suffered stuttering as well. Majority of people who is suffering from stuttering agrees that it will help a lot if the stutter would:

- Sing away. If you are having speech problems such as stuttering they should try to speak the words and sentences is a singing way. Making speaking a fun activity could make stuttering easy to overcome. People with a stutter often times find it hard to remember concepts and ideas because they are too shy to say what they want to say and they find their stutter something to be ashamed of. Needless to say, people with a stutter find t easy to relate to words when they are said in a “singing way.”

- Visualize what you’re about to say. People who are having stutter will avoid unnecessary commotion if they try to visualize the letters of the word they are going to say. One of the main reasons why people find it hard to say what they want to say is because they don’t have a picture of what they want to say in their heads.

The more authentic information about Stuttering you know, the more likely people are to consider you a Stuttering expert. Read on for even more Stuttering facts that you can share.

It is especially true for people that stutter because on of the root causes of stuttering are from not knowing exactly what to say and how to say it. Having a mental picture of what we want to say makes it easier to find the right words to use to describe the word.

- Speak on ‘breathing out’! Before saying a very difficult word take a deep breath. It is always a good idea to take a deep breath before we that one difficult word that we have in mind. One of the reasons why even people who speak normally have a hard time with words is that they rush in to say what they want to say. There is nothing bad about speaking in moderation because it would make whatever you will say more understandable.

- Say it in your mind. Let your mind hear yourself successfully saying the word you want to say, do this every time you have something to say that you think you will have a hard time with. This is a type of aural visualization. People who successfully visualized what they want to say wil be able to say it 90 % of the time.

Saying it in your mind is a kind of mental exercise where you let your self be more familiar with how it sounds the texture and the aural patterns and the up and downs of the words.

- Don’t put undue pressure on yourself. We all know that one of the factors that contribute to the development of stuttering is pressure and anxiety. Putting yourself in a stressful situation would cause more problems for the person who is suffering from stuttering. Remember to keep a stress-free environment when coping up with stuttering. Always keep these stuttering tips handy.

If you’ve picked some pointers about Stuttering that you can put into action, then by all means, do so. You won’t really be able to gain any benefits from your new knowledge if you don’t use it.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

Various Treatment Options for Stuttering in Adults

Sunday, April 10th, 2011

The following article covers a topic that has recently moved to center stage–at least it seems that way. If you’ve been thinking you need to know more about it, here’s your opportunity.

Stuttering is an impediment to normal, fluent speech. It is a complex set of speech behaviors that include repetition of sounds or syllables, hesitation, and difficulty pronouncing a word or group of words.

If you always find your words stuck at the tip of your tongue, you are not alone. More than three million Americans suffer from this speech difficulty. For sure, you know how hard it is to cope with the condition, not to mention the mocking reaction of others whenever they hear stutters in a speech.

There is no single cure for stammering. However, stutterers can heave a sigh of relief from the fact that their condition can be reduced so that they will become more comfortable with speaking and interacting with people. Because the speech problem varies from one person to another, people who stutter also need different kinds of treatment. The treatment method you will use must be tailored according to your unique symptoms. That way, it will be easy and quick for you to improve your speech fluency.

Nowadays, a wide array of treatments is available for people who stutter. Here are some of the therapies and other treatment options you may consider to control your tendency to stumble when you talk.

Anti-Stuttering Medications

Make sure that the medications you are going to take to reduce stammering are prescribed by your doctor. Certain medications such as risperidone, olanzapine, and haloperidol typically lower the incidence of stammering by 30 to 50 percent. Ask your doctor about the side effects of these drugs, so you will be well prepared if there’s any.

Is everything making sense so far? If not, I’m sure that with just a little more reading, all the facts will fall into place.

Avoid medications that trigger or increase the severity of stammering. These drugs include SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) such as Zoloft and Prozac. Ritalin, a dopamine agonist, is not recommended as well for stutterers.

Stammering Modification Therapy

This treatment method does not aim to stop a person’s stammering altogether, simply because it is impossible. As the term implies, the therapy modifies or alters stammering to make the condition less severe. In addition, the therapy helps eliminate avoidance to social situations and reduce the fear associated with stammering. With the help of a clinically trained speech specialist, you can make yourself a better speaker despite your tendency to stutter, thanks to stammering modification therapy.

Fluency Shaping Therapy

This therapy uses proper articulation, breathing, and relaxation techniques to train a person to speak fluently.
When you undergo fluency shaping therapy, you will learn how to speak correctly and reduce stammering by breathing with your diaphragm, slowly increasing the tension in your vocal cord as you start speaking, prolonging vowels to slow down your rate of speaking, and lessening the pressure on your articulation.
The therapy takes about one to two years to complete. After the therapy, you will notice significant improvements in your speech such as slower and more fluent speech. About 70 percent of patients get successful results from fluency shaping therapy.

Anti-Stuttering Devices

Devices that are designed to stop stuttering are found to be effective when used with fluency shaping therapy. These gadgets provide a modified auditory feedback to their users, helping them to hear their speaking voice.

That’s the latest from the Stuttering authorities. Once you’re familiar with these ideas, you’ll be ready to move to the next level.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

Key Factors to Remember in Stuttering Therapy

Monday, March 28th, 2011

When most people think of Stuttering, what comes to mind is usually basic information that’s not particularly interesting or beneficial. But there’s a lot more to Stuttering than just the basics.

There are myriad of ways to treat stuttering. One should not let stuttering get in the way of their speaking and conversing with other people, especially when one needs to demonstrate emotions.

A very popular treatment in stuttering is the speech therapy. This requires consulting a speech-language pathologist. However, finding the right speech-language pathologist for you is very important for they vary in expertise. Some may work perfectly with young children, while others specialize in problems associated with brain damage.

There are key factors to keep in mind in entering a therapy process. Pathologists and clinicians will not solve your disorder. They will be just key instruments in aiding you to eradicate stuttering. First, you should remember that all stuttering therapies are self-help process. Second, such therapy is long term and full-time process for stuttering affects not only your speech but also attitudes and behaviours. Thus, the third key point is about a therapy that alters speech, attitude and behaviour. Last, be sure to be clear about the process.

Speech therapies are sometimes available at local health clinics or university speech clinics. But do remember that mostly clinicians and pathologists here are graduate students in training. The graduate students also change each semester, so your relationship with your clinician is also changing.

Choosing a clinician and pathologist is another important factor in your therapy process. Vital aspects of time, financial resources, and plans are to be considered here. As a guide in selecting your clinician, here are some key points to look at. This advice is from Hugo Gregory of North-western University, a known speech-language pathologist.

One is the perspective of clinician on how to treat and use a program for his patients. Does he believe in one general type of program or a varied program that fit a particular characteristic of a stutterer?

It seems like new information is discovered about something every day. And the topic of Stuttering is no exception. Keep reading to get more fresh news about Stuttering.

Second is the content of the program. Does it focus on altering speech or does it include change in thoughts and feelings, or a combination of both?

Third is the process of the program. Does it include mechanisms for modification of stuttering or does it emphasize on learning skills for a stutter-free speech? This is also related to the fourth one. Does the program combine procedures for modifying stuttering with teaching of skills for building fluency?

Fifth is the practical aspect of the program. Does the program ensure a practice of learning from the clinic to real-life situations?

Sixth is the effort of the clinician to understand and link the frustration of the stutterer and his life experiences to be able to map how his patient will succeed in therapy and life in general.

Seventh is the span of time the therapy process will take. Is it short term or it has follow-up program to assist the stutterer in the process of change?

Lastly, has the clinician provided several opportunities for his patients to express their experiences before the therapy, during and after the therapy?

Generally, people who plan for a stuttering therapy should remember that good clinicians are honest, positive in their attitudes, open-minded, informative, and detail disciplined.

Now that wasn’t hard at all, was it? And you’ve earned a wealth of knowledge, just from taking some time to study an expert’s word on Stuttering.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

Stuttering Symptoms: Understanding the Signs of Speech Problems

Friday, March 25th, 2011

Stuttering is a normal speech behavior that occurs in ordinary conversations, public speaking engagements, or group discussions. Almost everyone has had experienced it, and it is not a cause for alarm if it does not interfere much in the clarity of a message or speech. However, some people tend to stutter more often than others do. Stammering becomes a speech problem if it gets in the way of communication or expressing oneself clearly.

There are many misconceptions about people who stutter a lot. One is that they are not as smart or well adjusted as non-stutterers are. This is mainly because of their difficulty in expressing themselves. However, people who stutter are not as unintelligent as they may appear. Stammering and intelligence have nothing to do with each other.

To know more and understand what stammering is and how it is manifested in children and adults, you have to learn the symptoms of this speech condition. Learning the symptoms enables you to take immediate actions once you have confirmed that you have speech disfluency.

Problems with speech production are the first symptoms of stammering. The most obvious sign of stammering is the repetition of syllables, sounds, or words. This occurs usually at the start of a word. Hesitation is another symptom. A person who stutters prolong or hold certain sounds at the start of a word for a few seconds. Stutterers also add a particular word or sound to his or her sentence in place of the word that’s stuck in their tongue.

Hopefully the information presented so far has been applicable. You might also want to consider the following:

The other symptoms of speech disfluency manifest themselves when a person attempts to control his or her stammering. Several movements of the body can be noticed while a stutterer is speaking. These include jerky head movements, rapid blinking of the eyes, poor eye contact, and shaking of the lips and jaw.

A few symptoms are more difficult to see than the physical symptoms of stammering. These symptoms involve the emotions, which can be recognized by the stutterer himself. The worst among all symptoms of stammering include fear of the condition itself, inability to express oneself clearly, and avoidance of situations in which a person has to speak. Intense fear of being ridiculed and embarrassed is fairly common among people who frequently stutter.

Stutterers also tend to become angered and frustrated because of their condition and the reactions of other people about it. As a result, the self-esteem and self-image of a person who stutters go into a nosedive. All these emotional symptoms lead to another cycle of stammering symptoms, thus worsening a person’s speech difficulties.

All symptoms of stuttering vary throughout a person’s lifespan. They may increase or decrease, depending on the physical and emotional state of the stutterer. The symptoms may lessen when the person whispers, sings, talkx to pets, speaks along with others, or copies another person’s manner of speaking.

On the other hand, symptoms get worse because of certain situations such as increased anxiety and nervousness when a person has to speak in public or to talk on the phone. Also, there are particular medications that trigger or aggravate the symptoms of stammering.

So now you know a little bit about Stuttering. Even if you don’t know everything, you’ve done something worthwhile: you’ve expanded your knowledge.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

A Speech Language Therapist Can Help Treat Stuttering

Monday, March 21st, 2011

Stuttering is a speech disorder. Fortunately, someone can help even if there is no permanent cure and this person is known as a Speech Language Pathologist or SLP.

This professional is educated in the study of human communication, its development and the various disorders so they know how to help a patient. They hold a master’s degree under their belt and must pass a state certification or licensure exam in order to practice as well as a certificate from the ASHA or American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. If the doctor is not around, a speech assistant can help out.

Before the SLP can treat the child, some tests need to be done because treatment for one patient is different with another. You must remember that stuttering varies depending on the child’s age, type and gender so this needs to be tailor made. Sometimes, the professional will need to use various strategies to treat the disorder.

A language intervention activity is one example. Here, the specialist will interact with the child by playing and talking. Pictures, books and other instruments are sometimes used if this will help stimulate language development. When the child is unable to pronounce something properly, this is when repetition exercises will be used.

Another is articulation therapy also known as sound production. Here the specialist will teach the child how to pronounce certain letters and produce the correct sound. A demonstration is used so the child will know how to move the tongue. In both cases, therapy sessions can be done one on one or with a small group.

Other examples include airflow therapies, anxiety reduction techniques, attitudinal therapy, biofeedback methods, rhythmic speech, trial therapy and vocal control.

It seems like new information is discovered about something every day. And the topic of Stuttering is no exception. Keep reading to get more fresh news about Stuttering.

If your child is diagnosed with stuttering, the only thing to do now is find a specialist who can help. You can get a referral from your doctor or look around in the phone directory. Some states have associations with listing of licensed and certified specialists.

Parents should also do their part in helping the child since a session with the specialist is not enough to make the problem go away. In fact, studies show that parents who are very supportive are able to complete the program the quickest with long term results.

This happens by creating a relaxed environment at home so the child can speak. The parent should also speak slowly so the child will be able to learn how to say the word correctly.

The specialist may recommend certain SLP activities and drills to be done at home to ensure continued progress outside the clinic.

The use of medication has also been used to treat stuttering but given that it has side effects, it is no longer used. There are also devices that have been invented.

Advances in science make it easier these days to get treatment for people who stutter. If you have a child, take him or her to a speech language pathologist. If you have it, do the same thing and educate yourself about the proper treatment options. Remember that this disorder neither has a cure nor a single remedy and the only thing it can do now is reduce the number of disruptions when a person is speaking.

We have a long way to go before we can say goodbye to stuttering.

This article’s coverage of the information is as complete as it can be today. But you should always leave open the possibility that future research could uncover new facts.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

How Yoga Helps Control Stuttering

Sunday, March 13th, 2011

Everybody knows the various health benefits of yoga. This healing system, which originated in India, is well known for its principle of ensuring the harmony of the mind and the body. This leads to yoga being an effective cure for a wide variety of ailments and health problems. However, not many people know that yoga is beneficial as well for seemingly minor bodily conditions such as stuttering and other speech disorders.

At some points in their lives, children and adults experience speech difficulties such as getting stuck on their words. While it seems it is just normal to stutter, this could pose a problem in a person’s day-to-day interaction with other people. If you stumble every time you speak, it would be very hard for you to get your message across. Worse, it can affect your self-esteem and performance in various social situations.

According to Yoga principles, stress has a lot to do with most speech problems. People start to stutter when they become overly stressed. Anxiety is another factor that causes people to stutter. When you are very nervous before you start speaking, your vocal cords become tensed. And when you begin to talk, you will naturally stutter.

Yoga experts believe that the only way to stop people from stuttering is through relaxation. This is where yoga and meditation come into play. Yoga trains people how to relax so that they can speak with much ease. Simple yoga postures and Pranayama, in particular, aid in managing stress and the stammering. When paired with speech therapy (under the supervision of a trained speech therapist), yoga and meditation can effectively reduce the frequency of stammering in people and improve their speech abilities.

People tend to stutter if they breathe incorrectly before and while speaking. The proper way to do it is to breathe in deeply before you start to say something and then breathe out while you are talking. Yoga can help you address breathing problems through Pranayama, which is a system that corrects breathing patterns. Pranayama uses the optimum capacity of your lungs so that you can cope with breathing and speech difficulties.

Are you interested in practicing yoga to control your tendency to stutter? The first things you must focus on are recognizing and accepting your speech problem. Then think about all your talents and positive attributes. In doing so, you will have a better perception of yourself. You will be less self-conscious as a result. This positive thinking will greatly help you deal with stress that causes your stammering.

The next step is to practice the following Yoga postures and breathing techniques to make you feel more relaxed:

So far, we’ve uncovered some interesting facts about Stuttering. You may decide that the following information is even more interesting.

? Surya Namaskar (sun salutation)

? Progressive relaxation techniques and meditation

? Suksham Vyayama (a relaxing breathing exercise)

? Concentrating on breathing to make it easier for you to deal with stressful thoughts

? Positive attitude for better self-esteem and self-image

? Bhastrika and Nadi Shodhana that help solve breathing problems

? Simhasana (lion pose)

Without a doubt, yoga is an effective way to heal stuttering. It is advised that you practice yoga with the help of a trained yoga therapist to train you about proper relaxation and breathing techniques.

When word gets around about your command of Stuttering facts, others who need to know about Stuttering will start to actively seek you out.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, feel free to visit his top ranked GVO affiliate site: GVO

The Lidcombe Program Can Help Treat Stuttering During the Pre-School Years

Saturday, March 12th, 2011

There are a lot of techniques that can help children who stutter. One example of this is the Lidcombe program.

The Lidcombe program was developed to treat stuttering in children below the age of 6. It is based on a body of laboratory-operant condition research and is done in two stages. In the first stage the objective is to stop the child from stuttering. The second is to reinforce the first so this can be maintained for a longer period.

The Lidcombe program was developed in Australia and used widely in Canada, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Some are already using this in the United States, South African and several non-English speaking countries.

What makes the Lidcombe program so different from others is the fact that this is conducted by parents and not a speech language pathologist. This person is still there and his or her job is simply to teach the parents how to do this treatment.

Treatment using the Lidcombe program is very direct. This means directly giving feedback to the child about their speech. There is no negative feedback when this is being done with a child. If the child does not make any mistakes, the parent will reply ? no bumps there? or ?that was lovely smooth talking.? However if the child stutters, the parents will acknowledge it and say ?that was a stuck word? or ? try it again without the stuck word.? The parent does not have to give feedback each time the child speaks but chooses specific times.

A daily log is also used so the parent will be able to measure the child’s progress. The scale is from 0 to 10. If the child was rated a 0, this means this it was a stutter free day. Should the child score 10, then there was severe stuttering.

I trust that what you’ve read so far has been informative. The following section should go a long way toward clearing up any uncertainty that may remain.

At the end of each week, the child, parent and speech language pathologist will examine the scores of the previous week.

As mentioned earlier, the Lidcombe program is comprised of two stages. When the child maintains a low stutter score, this is the time that stage 2 begins.

Treatment for the Lidcombe program varies and this depends on the child. But on average, most children move to stage 2 after 11 visits to the clinic.

The key to the Lidcombe program’s success is the positive support of both parents and children. This is because treatment is done in a comfortable environment namely the home and the one who is treating the child is either the mother or the father.

Parents who want to try the Lidcombe program should remember that this treatment must never interfere with the child’s communication. It should be a part of the child’s everyday life so you don’t need to set a time and place.

It will take some time to learn which is why from time to time, the speech language pathologist will visit the home to make sure the parents are doing it correctly.

The success of the Lidcombe program lies in the hands in the parents. Once they are able to master the skills that are taught to them, only then will the child be able tor reduce the number of times he or she stutters. If you have a child who stutters beyond six years of age, another program has to be used because this can only work for children in their pre-school years.

Hopefully the sections above have contributed to your understanding of Stuttering. Share your new understanding about Stuttering with others. They’ll thank you for it.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO

Types of Neuropharmacological Agents in Treating Stuttering

Monday, February 7th, 2011

When you think about Stuttering, what do you think of first? Which aspects of Stuttering are important, which are essential, and which ones can you take or leave? You be the judge.

Because the cause of stuttering has never been clearly defined, the use of pharmacological agents has not been encouraged ever since. In addition, people who stutter experience different effects of drugs prescribed for treatment.

As such, there are different perspectives being taken in drug treatment for stuttering. From the etiological theories, experts view mainly the cause of stuttering as a psychological problem. It further explains that stuttering is a result of repressed needs or unconscious expression of internal conflicts.

Theories later see stuttering as a series of learned behaviours arising from psychological causes such as fear and anxiety. There are some theories that view stuttering as a genetic disorder. Scientific evidences later developed based on neurological motor and sensory deficits. These genetic abnormalities are combined with motor control deficits, learned behaviours, and psychological deficits as combined cause of stuttering.

Following these theories, still several pharmaceutical agents are invented to cure the disorder. Examples of agents based on these etiological theories are antipsychotics, neuroleptics, and sedatives and tranquilizers.

Antipsychotics include the use of carbon dioxide inhalation in 1948. This treatment would leave the stutterer unconscious for a moment and then followed by psychomotor excitement. Several psychological-related conditions such as phobias, hysteria, and disassociative states are treated with carbon dioxide. However, some experiments proved the ineffectiveness of carbon dioxide treatment in stuttering.

It’s really a good idea to probe a little deeper into the subject of Stuttering. What you learn may give you the confidence you need to venture into new areas.

The neuroleptics are antipsychotic drugs that affect the psychomotor activity. Fortunately, they do not have hypnotic effects nor are sleep-inducing agents. Examples of neuroleptics used in treating stuttering are thioridaxine, trifluoperazine, and haloperidol. Experiments showed that thioridaxine and trifluoperazine reduce the severity of stuttering but not the frequency. Meanwhile, haloperidol is the most effective drug that improves stuttering symptoms as of to date but seldom prescribed because of its adverse effects such as dizziness.

Because of the popular theory of fear and anxiety as probable cause of stuttering, many experts have prescribed the use of sedatives and tranquilizers. An example of drug that has been tried but with little effect is the antihistamine, which has anti-anxiety and hypnotic effects.

Other minor tranquilizers include reserpine and meprobamate. Both are effective in lessening anxiety and physical tension.

Meanwhile, there are also drugs being prescribed based on a symptomatic and serendipitous basis. Some drugs are prescribed to cure the symptom of stuttering rather than the underlying etiology. For instance, neostignine was used because it was effective in treating spastic conditions, which some studies consider stuttering as a form of spasm. Luckily, some experiments showed positive results.

In addition, verapamil is a drug prescribed due to serendipitous basis?a calcium channel blocker is used in treating cardiac arrhythmia. Like neostignine, experiments also showed favourable results. It is believed that verapamil might also reduce spasm in the muscles of articulation the way it does in the cardiac muscles. Other types of cardiac medications also showed positive effects on stuttering.

Yet, there are two vital factors in treating stuttering. One, there is no single drug approach that has been proven better quality. Second, even experiments showed favourable results, these drugs did not eradicate the stuttering.

About the Author
By Anders Eriksson, proud owner of this top ranked web hosting reseller site: GVO





Search