LA

Speech Pathology Lecture Notes Review

Embolus

  • A traveling blood clot that moves through the bloodstream.
  • Can block an artery, often causing a stroke.

Thrombosis

  • A blood clot that forms slowly over time.
  • Usually due to plaque buildup in arteries.

Aneurysm

  • A weak spot in an artery wall that balloons out.
  • If it bursts, it can cause a hemorrhagic stroke.

Edema

  • Swelling in body tissue, including the brain.
  • Happens after injury like a stroke.
  • Can interfere with recovery.

Clot

  • A clump of blood cells and protein that forms to stop bleeding.
  • In the brain, it can block blood flow and cause a stroke.

Bolus

  • The soft mass of food or liquid that is formed in the mouth and swallowed.

Tumor

  • An abnormal growth of tissue.
  • Can be benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous).
  • May cause pressure or damage to the brain.

Stroke (CVA)

  • When blood flow to the brain is stopped.
  • Either by a blockage (ischemic) or bleeding (hemorrhagic).
  • Causes brain damage.

Neoplasm

  • A new and abnormal growth of tissue, often a tumor.

Jargon (in speech disorders)

  • Speech that is fluent but filled with made-up words or meaningless phrases.
  • Often seen in Wernicke’s aphasia.

Aspiration

  • When food or liquid enters the airway (trachea) instead of the esophagus.
  • Increases the risk of pneumonia.

Penetration (in swallowing)

  • When food or liquid enters the larynx but doesn’t go below the vocal folds.

Deglutition

  • The act of swallowing.

Hydration

  • Having enough fluid in the body.
  • Essential for overall health and safe swallowing.

Nutrition

  • The intake of food to meet the body's energy and health needs.
  • Swallowing problems can lead to poor nutrition.

Radiation (in dysphagia context)

  • Radiation therapy to the head or neck (e.g., for cancer).
  • Can damage muscles or nerves used in swallowing, causing dysphagia.

Dysphagia

  • Difficulty swallowing.
  • Can lead to malnutrition, dehydration, and aspiration pneumonia.

Aphasia

  • A language disorder caused by brain damage, often from a stroke.
  • Affects speaking, understanding, reading, and writing.

Swallowing Stages

  • Four sequential stages:
    • Anticipatory – thinking about food; sensory awareness.
    • Oral – chewing and pushing food to the back of the mouth.
    • Pharyngeal – triggering the swallow reflex; closing airway.
    • Esophageal – moving food through the esophagus to the stomach.

Swallowing Stage Details

  • Anticipatory: Smelling, seeing, and preparing to eat.
  • Oral: Chewing (mastication), forming bolus, tongue pushes bolus back.
  • Pharyngeal: Swallow reflex starts, vocal folds close, epiglottis covers airway.
  • Esophageal: Bolus moves through esophagus to stomach via peristalsis.

Causes of Dysphagia

  • Structural (e.g., oral cancer, cleft palate)
  • Neuromuscular (e.g., stroke, ALS)
  • Psychogenic (e.g., anxiety)
  • Radiation-related (e.g., cancer treatment)
  • Developmental (e.g., premature infants)

Gurgling or Wet Voice After Eating

  • Often suggests aspiration or penetration—food or liquid entering the airway.

Brainstem and Swallowing

  • The brainstem, specifically the medulla, contains nuclei for cranial nerves that control swallowing (e.g., vagus, glossopharyngeal, hypoglossal).

Dysphagia in Dementia

  • Dementia affects memory and attention, leading to problems with initiating swallowing, forgetting to chew or swallow, and poor coordination.

Gastric Tube

  • A tube inserted into the stomach to provide nutrition when oral feeding isn’t safe or possible.

Purposes of Eating

  • Nutrition
  • Hydration
  • Pleasure/social interaction
  • All are important for quality of life.

Dysphagia in Oral Cancer

  • Surgery, radiation, or tumors can damage the tongue, jaw, or throat structures involved in swallowing.

Swallowing in Premature Babies

  • Preemies often lack coordination between sucking, swallowing, and breathing.
  • Feeding specialists help train these skills.

Dysphagia Assessment: Adults vs. Children

  • Adults can often describe their symptoms; children may not.
  • In pediatrics, SLPs use observation, parent reports, and check feeding milestones.

Chronological vs. Developmental Age in Children

  • Chronological age = actual age in months/years.
  • Developmental age = level at which the child functions (e.g., speech, cognition).
  • SLPs use developmental age to choose appropriate assessment tools.

Language Impairment

  • Difficulty with form, content, or use of language.

Language Impairment Effects on Children

  • Infancy: Delayed babbling, poor eye contact.
  • Preschool: Trouble forming sentences, vocabulary gaps.
  • School-age: Struggle with reading, writing, following directions.

Dementia vs. Aphasia vs. Dysarthria vs. Apraxia

  • Dementia: Memory + language decline (e.g., Alzheimer’s).
  • Aphasia: Language problem (not motor). Often stroke-related.
  • Dysarthria: Slurred speech due to weak muscles.
  • Apraxia: Motor planning issue—can’t say words even if muscles work.

Conditions Affecting Short-Term Memory

  • Dementia, especially Alzheimer’s.

Brain Hemisphere Responsibilities

  • Left hemisphere: Language, math, logic.
  • Right hemisphere: Emotions, attention, facial recognition, prosody.

Effects of Damage to Left vs. Right Hemisphere

  • Left hemisphere damage: Aphasia, language problems.
  • Right hemisphere damage: Pragmatic problems, emotion reading, neglect.

Alzheimer’s Causes

  • Brain degeneration, plaque buildup, and tangled proteins (neurofibrillary tangles) disrupting neuron function.

Jargon in Aphasia

  • Fluent but nonsensical speech, often seen in Wernicke’s aphasia.

Communication Difficulties in Children with Autism

  • Pragmatics (use of language in social situations)
  • Nonverbal communication (eye contact, gestures)
  • Delayed language development
  • Literal interpretation (trouble with figurative language)