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How is Dysarthria Diagnosed?
- 6:07, 12th September 2018
- Test Organization
- Conditions
- Dysarthria
Dysarthria is caused by muscle weakness, which occurs from neurological injury. This problem is generally associated with the muscle that generates speech, often making it troublesome for the people to pronounce words.
To determine the type of dysarthria you have, a speech-language pathologist will evaluate different tests. These tests are helpful to the neurologist as they can look for an underlying cause that leads to this problem.
The diagnoses include:
# Studies of nerve and brain- These studies help to pinpoint the source of the problem. The electrical activity in the brain is measured by an electroencephalogram. This assesses the activity in the nerves when they send a message to muscles. The speed and strength of the electrical signals are measured by the nerve conduction studies when the signals get transmitted from the nerves to the muscles.
# Urine and blood tests- This is done to determine whether dysarthria is caused due to an inflammatory disease or infections.
# Imaging tests- This includes a CT scan or MRI that creates a detailed image of the neck, head and brain, which may help to identify the reason behind the speech problem.
# Brain biopsy- In case a brain tumor is presumed, a small sample of brain tissue is removed for testing.
# Lumbar puncture- During this procedure, a nurse puts a needle inside the lower back and takes the specimen of cerebrospinal fluid for laboratory testing. Lumbar puncture is highly beneficial to diagnose central nervous system disorder, serious infections and spinal cord or brain cancer.
# Neuropsychological tests- Though dysarthria does not affect your mental ability, and speech and writing ability, and underlying disorder can. Neuropsychological tests measure cognitive skills, ability to read, write and understand speech.
In order to know more about this condition and the ways it is further diagnosed, contact a doctor or message an expert at Curedit.
