Dysarthria
6-minute read
Key facts
- Dysarthria is when the muscles you use to breathe or speak become weakened or paralysed making speech slurred or unclear.
- Symptoms of dysarthria can include difficulty controlling the volume of your speech, and speed and changes to your voice — you may also find it difficult to eat, drink or control your saliva.
- Brain or nerve damage for example from stroke, Parkinson’s disease, Down syndrome and motor neuron disease can cause dysarthria.
- A speech pathologist can diagnose dysarthria by assessing how you speak, eat and move your mouth.
- Treatments include speech therapy to improve your speech or learning to use sign language or communication devices, if you have severe dysarthria.
What is dysarthria?
Dysarthria is when the muscles you use to breathe and speak are weakened or paralysed. Your speech can become slurred and hard to understand. This happens because of nerve or brain damage. Your tongue, lips, palate, jaw, and larynx muscles can also be affected.
If you have dysarthria, you may notice problems with:
- your breathing
- your ability to make clear sounds
- the rhythm of your speech
- how loudly you can speak
Dysarthria can occur together with other speech and language issue such as aphasia. Aphasia is when someone has difficulty comprehending or communicating with language.
Both adults and children can develop dysarthria.
What are the signs and symptoms of dysarthria?
Symptoms of dysarthria are different between people, and can include:
- speaking too slowly or too quickly
- speaking too quietly or too loudly
- changes to your voice or pitch — your voice may sound harsh, nasal, breathy, monotonous or very high or low pitched
- being unable to say longer words properly
- being unable to move your tongue, lips or jaw properly
- difficulty eating, drinking or controlling your saliva (drooling)
Symptoms can range from mild to severe.
If you have mild symptoms, you might only have difficulty being understood in some situations, for example, if you are tired or in a noisy environment.
If you have severe symptoms, people may not be able to understand what you are saying at all. You might need to communicate using a device or other tools.
Your symptoms may also change over time. They can improve or get worse, depending on what is causing your dysarthria.
CHECK YOUR SYMPTOMS — Use the Symptom Checker and find out if you need to seek medical help.
What causes dysarthria?
You can develop dysarthria after an illness or injury that causes damage to your brain or the nerves that control your ability to speak. Causes include:
- congenital conditions such as Down syndrome and cerebral palsy
- stroke
- Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis
- motor neurone disease
- myasthenia gravis
- injuries or complications from accidents, head injuries or surgery
Some medicines and drugs can cause dysarthria, including alcohol, narcotic and sedative medicines.
How is dysarthria diagnosed?
If you suddenly develop slurred speech, it’s important to see a doctor right away. It could be a sign of a serious condition or illness.
A speech pathologist can diagnose dysarthria by assessing your speech. They will watch how you speak, eat and move your mouth and tongue.
ASK YOUR DOCTOR — Preparing for an appointment? Use the Question Builder for general tips on what to ask your GP or specialist.
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How is dysarthria treated?
A speech pathologist can help treat dysarthria with exercises to strengthen your speech muscles. This can help improve the speed and clarity of your speech.
If you have severe dysarthria, you might need to learn different ways of communicating. You may learn to use gestures, symbols, devices or writing to communicate.
Your treatment will be tailored to your needs. It will depend on what is causing your dysarthria and how severe it is.
If you have dysarthria, here are some tips for helping others understand you better:
- Look at the person you are talking to.
- Try to relax and take a breath before you speak.
- Speak slowly.
- Use shorter sentences.
- Take regular pauses.
- Use writing or gestures to explain what you mean.
- Reduce background noise if possible.
Resources and support
- Read more on communication after a stroke at the Stroke Foundation.
- Queensland Health have fact sheets about dysarthria in:
- You can find a speech pathologist on the Speech Pathology Australia website, or you could talk to your doctor.
- Visit the Communication Hub for information about services and organisations available for people who experience communication difficulties.