Our Services

In a language disorder, language development and/or language ability is impaired. This means that language production is disrupted in certain, possibly multiple, areas: semantics (see glossary), vocabulary, grammar, written language. Even a disturbed pronunciation is considered a language disorder if phonological processes, i.e., sound substitution processes, occur despite intact articulation ability.

A language disorder may affect not only language production but also language comprehension. The faulty processing of individual speech sounds is also considered a disorder of auditory language processing.

However, the so-called "receptive language disorder" can also exist as a sole diagnosis of a language disorder.

Examples of language disorders include: language development disorders in childhood and as a result of general cognitive and/or physical developmental delay/disorder, aphasia (i.e., language loss after, for example, a stroke), and language deterioration (e.g., in dementia, Parkinson's syndrome, multiple sclerosis).

Depending on the presentation, speech therapy therefore deals with the development, recovery, and/or stabilization of linguistic elements in the areas mentioned.

For example, a child who can articulate the "k" sound but doesn't use it, instead replacing it with the "t" sound, learns in phonological therapy through working with rhyming words that using one sound or the other creates a difference in meaning. "Keller-Teller" (cellar-plate) only rhymes if I use the target sound and not just the substitute sound. Otherwise, I'd say "Teller-Teller."

Or a child nearing two years old speaks too few words. Therapeutic play and very specific training, for example in word categories, stimulate vocabulary acquisition. The relationship between superordinate and subordinate concepts, their assignment and organization, is also practiced with adult patients, for instance those with aphasia, to help them with word retrieval.

A speech sound disorder is also referred to as an articulation disorder, functional articulation disorder, sound production disorder, or dyslalia, and it is the inability to correctly produce individual speech sounds motorically. It results in misformations of native language sounds despite intact language ability. However, speech sound disorders and language disorders can also occur together.

The category of speech sound disorders includes fluency disorders, phonetic disorders, verbal developmental dyspraxia, and acquired speech disorders in adults.

Stuttering and cluttering are fluency disorders. The well-known lisp, a misformation of the "s" sound, is an example of a phonetic disorder and is professionally known as sigmatism.

Phonetic errors that are highly variable and unpredictable are, for example, typical characteristics of verbal developmental dyspraxia and also of acquired apraxia of speech. Another acquired speech disorder is dysarthria, which can occur, for instance, with Parkinson's syndrome, multiple sclerosis, or after a traumatic brain injury. If the speech organs have also been injured, either in conjunction with other issues or in isolation (e.g., jaw fractures), this is additionally referred to as dysglossia.

Treatment for a speech sound disorder focuses on automating speech motor sequences. To learn new articulation patterns, a well-structured exercise program with a high repetition rate is necessary.

The stabilization of the target sound progresses through sound, syllable, word, and sentence levels. Accompanying treatment for orofacial functions, such as tongue exercises, may be necessary if these are impaired. Correct auditory perception of the sound being practiced is also a prerequisite for successful sound acquisition and may need to be trained. In cases of dysarthria, speech breathing, vocal quality, and prosody are usually treated in addition to articulation.

In the case of a voice disorder/dysphonia, the performance and endurance of the voice are limited. Changes in voice quality can occur, either continuously or temporarily. Hoarseness, for example, whether sudden or long-term, can be a symptom of a voice disorder, among other things. Laryngeal diseases, vocal cord paralysis, and other organic findings, as well as voice misuse, can lead to a voice disorder. In practice, it is not always possible to clearly distinguish whether an organic or a functional voice disorder is the cause of the symptoms.

Apart from potentially necessary surgical measures or medication, speech therapy is guided by the patient's symptoms and abilities and is always individually tailored. The exercises address areas such as perception, breathing, posture, articulation, and phonation. Voice hygiene is an additional important part of the treatment. This means that factors in everyday vocal behavior that cause and maintain the voice disorder are identified. These are then modified or even eliminated.

If the transport of solid and/or liquid food, as well as saliva, from the mouth to the stomach is impaired, various or multiple phases of the swallowing act can be affected. Problems can already occur during biting and chewing. The triggering of the swallowing reflex may be disturbed. The necessary movement of the larynx might be restricted. And/or the reflexive process in the esophagus is problematic.

In this context, you will often encounter the term aspiration, which essentially describes the different degrees of mis-swallowing.

Depending on the diagnosis, swallowing therapy focuses on restoring swallowing function or making the best possible use of remaining abilities to stabilize the current status and thus maintain the patient's quality of life. Procedures that rely on a compensatory component deal, for example, with changes in body posture to improve or facilitate the swallowing process.

Adaptive procedures support other therapeutic approaches and help through the use of additional aids and assistance. For example, a dietary plan is created to adjust the consistency of food to the swallowing capacity. Meals may be therapeutically supervised. With appropriate eating and drinking aids, food can be optimally placed in the mouth to facilitate swallowing.

The use of a tracheostomy tube to protect against aspiration can also be a necessary therapeutic intervention.

Here, you will often find the diagnosis of "visceral" or "infantile swallowing pattern" on a prescription from a dentist or orthodontist. This means that the tongue pushes against the front teeth or even between them during swallowing. In therapy, the correct swallowing pattern is developed and established.

A myofunctional disorder in the orofacial region, meaning in the face and particularly the mouth, can also or additionally mean that muscle tension is imbalanced. This means the necessary muscles are too weak (hypotonia) or too strong (hypertonia), or both alternately, as can be the case, for example, in individuals with physical disabilities. Muscle strength and coordination are treated, for instance, through oral motor exercises, among other methods.