BRADILALIA: SYMPTOMS, CAUSES, COMORBIDITY, TREATMENT - ECONOMÍA - 2025

The bradilalia is a medical condition consisting of an alteration in the way of speaking. People who suffer from it have affected both the rhythm and fluency of speech. For this reason, the way in which they emit words is slower than normal, in addition to some other expression problems.

Thus, for example, bradylalia can cause mutism (temporary lack of speech), excessive lengthening of phonemes, or stuttering. This disorder is related to different types of neurological problems, so the causes that produce it will be different in each case.

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Among other factors, bradylalia can appear associated with mental retardation, Down syndrome, brain pathologies or that affect the nervous system, consumption of substances that alter neuronal transmission, diabetes, or stroke.

Although it is not an excessively common problem, there is a need to better understand how it occurs and the ways in which it can be treated. Its resolution will be essential to improve the living conditions of patients suffering from brachylia, whose self-esteem and well-being can be greatly affected by it.

Symptoms and characteristics

The main symptom of bradylalia is difficulty speaking fluently and at a normal pace. Patients with this problem have trouble producing words at the same speed as a healthy person; in addition, they usually present a monotonous tone, and a slightly distorted voice.

However, even though this is the main symptom of bradylalia, it is not the only one. Next we will see some of the most common characteristics that people with this disorder present.

Abnormal speech patterns

In addition to the slow pace of speech and fluency problems, people with bradylalia have other language abnormalities.

Among others, for example, are the repetition of sounds in an inappropriate way, the prolongation of certain phonemes, or unjustified pauses when speaking.

Due to all these speech problems, people with brachylia can be mistaken for patients with mental disorders. Sometimes, it is true that this condition occurs together with others such as Down syndrome or psychological retardation; However it is not always so.

Therefore, in cases where brachylialia is the only problem for a patient, they will normally have to live with the stigma of being considered mentally ill despite not really being so.

Low self-esteem

Because communication skills are of the utmost importance to human beings, a person with brakylalia will usually have to deal with issues of self-confidence and lack of self-esteem.

The main drawback of this disorder is that those who suffer from it cannot communicate effectively with others. This will create all sorts of problems for them in their daily life, which they will have to learn to deal with individually. If braquilalia occurs with another type of disorder, this will be even more difficult.

Social isolation

The mixture of the difficulties to communicate with the rest and the low self-esteem that this produces cause that the majority of the patients with braquilalia end up withdrawing from the social life and losing to a great extent the contact with other people. As we know, this can have very negative consequences for anyone.

Contact with other individuals is essential for the maintenance of adequate mental health. For this reason, braquilalia can end up leading to problems such as depression or social anxiety if it is not treated properly.

In these cases, the patient may be able to benefit from the help of a mental health professional. Even in cases where the disorder is incurable, a psychologist can help deal with the more emotionally harsh aspects of it.

Complicated diagnosis

To diagnose braquilalia, it is necessary to turn to a language disorder expert, known as a speech therapist. However, even these can have problems in finding the cause of the slow and poorly articulated speech of patients with this pathology.

This is because, in general, brakylalia occurs with other disorders. In most cases, the speech therapist will have to perform a large number of tests on the person to determine the cause and the best possible treatment for their speech problem.

Thus, among other things, it is very likely that it will be necessary to measure their levels of intelligence, their perception and attention, and their literacy skills. Also, you will need to study your medical history to try to locate the primary cause of the disease.

Causes

Although it is not known exactly what causes brakylia, it is known that it is related to a neurological problem in most cases. For various reasons, a person may suffer an alteration in certain areas of her brain and partly lose control of the speaking organs.

These alterations can appear from childhood, due to problems such as cerebral palsy or Down syndrome; Or, on the contrary, they can arise once the person is already an adult, after suffering, for example, a stroke or a stroke.

At other times, braquilalia can be caused by the atrophy of some of the muscles and organs responsible for speech. However, this atrophy tends to be related to the neurological disorders mentioned above as well.

Pathophysiology

The main organs affected by braquilalia are those located within the speech apparatus; that is, in the mouth, pharynx and larynx. In some cases, the respiratory system is also damaged and bears part of the responsibility for the speech problems related to this disorder.

In the vast majority of cases, all these physical alterations have to do with the neurological problems that originally caused the disease. When the person is unable to use some organs correctly, they end up atrophied and are increasingly difficult to use.

For this reason, and because neurological problems are usually not treatable, most clinical approaches to treating brakylalia involve trying to stimulate the speaking organs until they regain normal function.

Comorbidity

As previously mentioned, this language disorder is usually caused by an alteration of the neurological system.

Therefore, it almost always occurs with other problems, especially related to the brain or mental abilities. Here we will see some of the most common.

Stroke

A stroke occurs when a capillary vessel in the brain breaks for any reason. Due to this, the blood supply stops reaching certain parts of this organ, which can cause all kinds of problems.

In the case of braquilalia, the areas that are usually affected are those that have to do with either language, or with motor control of the speech or respiratory organs.

In general, it is very difficult to fully restore lost function after a stroke or stroke. However, with proper treatment, the person may regain much of their ability to speak normally.

Cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy is a term that encompasses a series of disorders that mainly affect a person's mobility. Due to certain alterations in the brain, people with this problem may find it difficult to properly manage some of their organs.

These difficulties can be more or less serious depending on the severity of the cerebral palsy. As in the case of stroke, people with braquilalia often have damaged areas related to the control of the speech or respiratory organs, or even language areas such as Broca's or Wernicke's.

Down's Syndrome

Down syndrome is one of the most common causes of mental retardation that exists today. It is due to a genetic alteration that causes one of the chromosomes (21) to be made up of three copies instead of the usual two.

This disorder produces a large number of problems in people who suffer from it. Among others, their cognitive ability is usually significantly lower than that of the normotypic population.

In addition, people with Down syndrome can present all kinds of difficulties in their physical development, as well as a propensity to suffer diseases and complications of various kinds.

Regarding its relationship with brakylalia, Down syndrome also tends to produce language alterations on many occasions. One of them is precisely the difficulty to produce words at a normal rhythm and in a fluid way. However, in these cases, brakylalia is not usually the only speech problem present.

4- Mental disability

Lastly, many people with a low IQ may also have symptoms of brachylia. In general, the smarter a person is, the better he is able to master language; therefore, in cases where there is a mental disability, it is common for speech disorders to occur.

Treatment

Palliative treatment

In most cases, the physiological causes of braquilalia cannot be solved. Once the brain is damaged for whatever reason, it is practically impossible to remedy this fact. Therefore, most treatments for this disorder mainly focus on alleviating the symptoms.

Because it is a language disorder, those responsible for solving it are usually speech therapists. These experts will teach the patient different ways to acquire the ability to produce words without interruption and fluently.

Among other things, the patient will have to work to improve his coordination between the sounds he makes and his breathing. You will also need to strengthen your speaking and respiratory muscles, which may have been atrophied from lack of use.

Finally, you will be taught strategies to correct or conceal excessive slowness in communication. In this way, even if the underlying problem is not solved, the person can go back to living a normal life.

Physiological treatment

The latest research on the subject has shown that the nervous system, contrary to what was thought until recently, is capable of regenerating itself. Therefore, in recent times, therapies have appeared aimed at stimulating neuronal growth in damaged brain areas.

These therapies are still experimental in nature. However, some of them have very promising results, which could help brakylia patients in future times.

On the other hand, the use of stem cells to restore damaged brain areas in patients with neurological problems is still being investigated. Again, these procedures are not perfectly developed, but they promise to be very effective in the not too distant future.

Psychological treatment

Undoubtedly, one of the most complicated aspects of living with brakylia is the amount of insecurities and psychological problems that it can cause in patients who suffer from it. Thus, this disease is generally associated with low self-esteem, depression, anxiety and social isolation.

Therefore, in addition to trying to alleviate the physical symptoms of this speech disorder, an effective treatment for brachylialia must include some strategy to avoid the more serious mental consequences that usually appear in patients.

To do this, there are many different approaches that can be effective. The psychological therapies that tend to have the most success in these types of problems are two: cognitive - behavioral, and acceptance and commitment therapy.

Both approaches promise to help patients learn to cope with their problem without causing a serious psychological disorder. By combining palliative, neurological and psychological approaches, it is possible for most people to lead relatively normal lives despite suffering from this disorder.

However, there is still much to learn about braquilalia. Hopefully, within not too long, this speech disturbance may have been completely eradicated.

References

1. "Bradilalia" in: Definition Abc. Retrieved on: July 10, 2018 from Definition Abc: definicionabc.com.
2. "Bradiartria" in: Binipatía. Retrieved on: July 10, 2018 from Binipatía: binipatia.com.
3. "Dysarthria" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: July 10, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.
4. "Bradilalia" in: Binipatía. Retrieved on: July 10, 2018 from Binipatía: binipatia.com.
5. "Language disorder" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: July 10, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.