What is dysarthria?

Dysarthria (say "dis-AR-three-uh") is a disorder that makes it hard to speak well. People who have it understand language. They know what they want to say. And they usually don't have trouble reading and writing. But when they talk, their speech is often slurred and hard to understand.

Dysarthria can be caused by an injury to the brain or a disease of the nervous system. Examples include a stroke, Parkinson's disease, myasthenia gravis, or a head injury. These conditions can affect the nerves that control the lips, jaw, tongue, and soft palate.

If you have dysarthria, you and your family may feel frustrated and anxious. But speech therapy can help improve your speech so that others can understand you better.

The symptoms of dysarthria depend on what caused it. People with dysarthria may:

• Slur their speech.
• Have a hard time saying consonants with enough force to be understood.
• Speak too fast or too slow.
• Mumble and run their words together.
• Be able to say only a few words per breath.
• Speak too softly.
• Have a hard time sucking, chewing, and swallowing.

Your doctor will do a physical exam and ask questions about your medical history. The doctor may refer you to a speech-language pathologist (SLP).

Your doctor or SLP may suggest other tests to:

• Find out if you have had a stroke, an injury to your brain, or a disease of your nervous system.
• Look for a swallowing problem. Sometimes this is done with a swallowing test that uses X-rays.

The SLP will also listen to you talk. They will watch how you say sounds and combinations of sounds. The SLP will also listen to how you pause between phrases, how you put stress on parts of words, and how loudly you speak.

If a treatable medical condition is causing your speech problem, your doctor will likely start by treating that condition. This may also improve your speech.

If your speech problem can't be solved by treating a medical condition, then there are things your doctor or speech-language pathologist can do to help improve your speech. They may give you:

• Methods to help make your speech sounds clearer.
• Exercises to strengthen the muscles of your mouth.
• Strategies to help you communicate better.
• A computer or other device, if needed, to help you communicate.
• A palatal lift. This is a device that looks like a retainer. It supports the soft palate.

Your health care team will help you decide on the best treatment.

Having dysarthria can make be frustrating. Try to be patient with yourself. Give yourself time to get the words out. Be patient with others. If they have trouble understanding you, try again. Try other methods to help listeners understand you. For example, try using apps for your phone or tablet.