Virtually all the acts we carry out are communicative. Gestures, grimaces, sounds, smells and even distances are and have always been used to obtain information about the actions, motivations and thoughts of others.
Even the absence of action is indicative of something. However, in addition to the above, human beings have one more element to communicate, a symbolic one. This symbolic element It is language, which at the oral level is expressed through speech.
Speech or oral language is one of the most fundamental means of communication and bonding for human beings. This capacity develops throughout the life cycle, going from emitting simple holophrases or single words with intentionality to being able to construct elaborations as complex as a Shakespeare play.
However, in many people the development of this capacity or its normal functioning can be delayed or altered due to multiple causes. These alterations in oral communication have been studied by sciences such as psychology and medicine, and From them, different types of speech disorders have been conceptualized.. And no, dyslexia is not one of them, since it is only limited to reading problems.
Communicating is something fundamental for the development of human beings. And a large part of our communicative capacity depends, as we have said, on speech.
However, speech is not something that appears suddenly (although some authors such as Noam Chomsky became famous for defending that we have innate structures that allow the development of this ability), but it has to be learned and developed. Language in general is a complex element that ideally we will acquire and consolidate throughout our physical and cognitive maturation.
Some of the elements that we have to acquire and improve are articulatory ability, speech fluency and comprehension, vocabulary and word-finding ability, grammar and syntaxand even when and how we should communicate certain things in a certain way.
Although these milestones are generally acquired at certain evolutionary moments, in some subjects problems, deteriorations or poor development of the understanding and expression of language appear that limit the correct functioning and/or socio-emotional evolution of the individual.
Let’s look at some of the most common below.
1. Language disorder or dysphasia
This disorder supposes the presence of a disability in the understanding and expression of language in children with a level of intelligence typical of their level of development, not only at the oral level, but also in other facets such as written language or reading.
The language disorder or dysphasia can be evolutionary, in which case it could not be a consequence of other disorders, or acquired, in the latter case being the product of some type of brain accident, seizure disorders or traumatic brain injuries.
In any case, the child may have problems in expressive or receptive language, that is, the problem may occur at the level of defects in the emission of language or in its understanding. Children with this disorder usually have a small vocabulary and limited grammatical structure. which causes the speech to be inferior and more limited than expected.
In the case of acquired dysphasia, the effects would be equivalent to those of aphasia in adult subjects, although with the particularity that greater brain plasticity during the development stage usually allows the appearance of language even when there is neuronal damage.
2. Phonological disorder or dyslalia
Another of the main oral language disorders is dyslalia. This is understood as those disorders in which different errors occur in the articulation of words, the most frequent being substitution of sounds, distortions of the correct ones or the lack (omission) or addition (insertion) of these. For example, a problem in the shape of the tongue can cause dyslalia.
Although it is common for these types of problems to occur in childhood, for it to be considered dyslalia, the errors made must be inappropriate for the child’s level of development, interfering with social and academic performance.
3. Childhood-onset dysphemia, stuttering, or fluency disorder
Dysphemia is a disorder widely known by society as a whole, although we usually refer to it as stuttering. It is about a disorder focused on the execution of speech, specifically its fluency and rhythm. During the emission of speech, the person who suffers from it suffers one or more spasms or blockages that interrupt the normal rhythm of communication.
Dysphemia is usually experienced with shame and anxiety (which in turn worsens performance) and makes communication and social adaptation difficult. This problem only appears when talking to someone, being able to speak normally in complete solitudeand is not due to brain or perceptual lesions.
Dysphemic disorder usually begins between three and eight years of age. This is because at this age the normal speech pattern begins to be acquired. Depending on its duration, several subtypes of dysphemia can be found: evolutionary type (lasts a few months), benign (lasts a few years) or persistent (the latter being the chronic type that can be observed in adults).
The speech disorder known as dysarthria refers to the difficulty articulating words due to a neurological problem which causes the mouth and the muscles that produce speech to not have the proper muscle tone and therefore not respond correctly. Thus, the problem is not so much in the muscle tissues (although these also suffer in the long run due to misuse) but in the way in which the nerves connect with them. It is one of the most well-known types of speech disorders.
5. Social communication disorder (pragmatic)
In this disorder we do not find problems either when articulating or understanding the literal content of the message that is transmitted. However, those who suffer from it suffer great difficulty, and this disorder is based on the presence of severe difficulties in the practical use of language.
Those who suffer from this disorder have problems adapting communication to the context in which they are found, as well as understanding the metaphorical meaning or implicit of what is said to them and even to change the way of explaining something, regulating the conversation with other elements such as gestures or respecting turns to speak.
6. Dyglossia
Like dysarthria, dysglosia It is a disorder that causes severe difficulty in articulating the sounds that make up speech.. In this case, however, the problem lies in the presence of alterations in the oral organs themselves, such as congenital malformations. So, here there are already easily identifiable flaws in the morphology of well-defined body parts.
7. Tachyphemia or slurring
It is a speech disorder characterized by exaggeratedly fast speech, missing words along the way and making mistakes. Its presence is common in people with a very excited mood, including cases in which the subject is in a manic episode or as a result of the consumption of exciting substances. However, it can also occur during childhood without the need for an external alteration.
8. Aphasias
One of the most well-known and studied groups of language disorders is aphasia. We understand aphasia as the loss or alteration of language in adult subjects. (in children we would be faced with the aforementioned dysphasias) due to the presence of a brain alteration or injury. Depending on the location or brain structure damaged, the effects on language will be different, allowing its study to find various typologies.
Types of aphasias
Although we can find various classifications such as Luria’s or Jakobson’s, the most well-known and used classification takes into account the presence of verbal fluency, verbal comprehension and repetition capacity in different types of injuries.
Broca’s aphasia: Characterized by causing high difficulty in producing language and expressing oneself, but maintaining a good level of understanding. However, people with this type of aphasia are usually not able to repeat what is said to them. It is fundamentally due to an injury or isolation of Broca’s area.
Transcortical motor aphasia: As in Broca’s aphasia, there is difficulty in emitting fluent and coherent language while language comprehension is maintained. The big difference is that in this case the subject is able to repeat (and with a good level of fluency) what is said to him. It is caused by an injury to the pars triangularis, a region close to Broca’s area and connected to it.
Wernicke’s aphasia: In this aphasia the patient shows a high level of fluency in language, although what he says may not make much sense. The main characteristic of this aphasia is that it causes severe difficulties in understanding auditory information, which in turn causes one to be unable to repeat information coming from outside. The brain lesion would be found in Wernicke’s area. In patients with schizophrenia who have language impairment, it is common to find alterations similar to those of this aphasia.
Transcortical sensory aphasia: Caused by lesions in the area that joins the temporal, parietal and occipital lobes, this aphasia is similar to Wernicke’s except for the detail that repetition is preserved.
conduction aphasia: Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas are connected to each other by a bundle of nerve fibers called the arcuate fasciculus. In this case, both verbal expression and understanding are relatively correct, but repetition would be greatly impaired. We must keep in mind that to repeat something we first have to understand what comes to us and then re-express it, so if the connection between both areas repetition is impaired.
global aphasia: This type of aphasia is due to massive damage to the hemisphere specialized in language. All aspects of the language would be severely affected.
Mixed transcortical aphasia: Damage to the temporal and parietal lobes can cause severe deficits in almost all aspects of language. Basically, language isolation occurs, affecting expression and comprehension, although repetition is maintained and it is even possible that the person is able to finish sentences.
