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A form of speech disorder, stuttering or stammering occurs when sounds or words are repeated, thus disrupting the flow of speech. These disruptions in speech are often accompanied by other signs such as facial tics, rapid eye blinking and lip tremors and make communicating a very challenging task.

The symptoms of stuttering can vary, with certain factors aggravating the intensity of stuttering. These factors include speaking in front of a group of people and talking on the telephone. On the other hand, activities such as singing, reading or speaking in unison may reduce the intensity of a person’s stuttering.

Estimates put the number of Americans affected by stuttering at approximately 3 million, with the disorder most commonly occurring in children between the ages of 2 and 5. Boys are more likely to be affected than girls. Usually the stuttering problem is resolved in time, once the child reaches puberty. The incidence of stuttering amongst adults is lower, with approximately 1% of Americans being affected.

Understanding Speech: To gain a better understanding of stuttering, one needs to first understand how speech is produced. Speech is made by a series of muscle movements that involve breathing, voice production or phonation and articulation. The latter involves movement of the throat, tongue, palate and lips. All muscle movements are controlled by the brain with the senses of touch and hearing playing a supervisory role. There are two types of stuttering, developmental stuttering (DS) and acquired stuttering (AS).

• Development stuttering usually occurs during the early stages of a child’s speech and language development. The onset is gradual with the symptoms getting more apparent with time. In most cases the stuttering will resolve by the time the child reaches puberty. Cases that do not resolve on their own or those that do not respond to treatment are classified as persistent development stuttering (PDS).
• Acquired stuttering occurs in people who formerly had no speech disorder. In these cases the onset of stuttering is not gradual but occurs suddenly. Acquired stuttering is further classified into neurogenic or psychogenic stuttering. Neurogenic stuttering occurs due to problems that affect the nerves transmitting signals between the brain and the muscles required for speech. This is usually caused after some trauma to the brain such as that which may occur after a stroke. Psychogenic stuttering on the other hand is usually caused by psychological factors including extreme stress or some emotional trauma such as the loss of a loved one. It may also occur in individuals suffering from some form of mental illness such as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.
  

The diagnosis of stuttering is usually made by a speech-language pathologist. As the name suggests, this is a health professional that has been trained in the science of voice, speech and language disorders. In making a diagnosis of psychogenic stuttering, the speech-language pathologist will consider the individual’s history, noting when and under what circumstances the disorder was first noticed. Factors that may be considered include lifestyle issues such as stress levels at home and at work, emotional trauma and the impact of stuttering in the individual’s life.

There are several approaches to treatment for psychogenic stuttering. The choice of treatment will depend on the individual’s age, communication goals and the event that triggered off the stuttering. The treatments usually focus on methods of minimizing stuttering when the individual speaks such as speaking more slowly, regulating breathing and initially using single syllable words instead of the longer syllable ones. They will also focus on lessening a person’s anxiety while speaking. Certain medications used to treat epilepsy, anxiety and depression may be used but their side effects make them unsuitable for long term use. Other forms of psychological treatments may also be recommended in case the stuttering has been caused by a traumatic event.

Reference:

1. http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/voice/pages/stutter.aspx

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