Articulation Disorders

Speech production requires that the components of the physical speech mechanism (vocal cords, tongue, lips, teeth, soft and hard palate, and lungs) work together in specific ways to produce the needed sounds. Articulation disorders result from impairments in this coordination.

Articulation disorders are indicated when a child’s speech at age 3 cannot be understood by an unfamiliar adult, and additionally, at age 8, when errors in articulation are still evident. In other instances, articulation problems may reflect specific physical impairment, such as cleft lip, cleft palate, or tongue-tie.

Cleft lip is a separation or split in the upper lip. A split that extends to the roof of the mouth is a cleft palate. Although the exact causes of cleft lips and cleft palates are not known, both genetic and prenatal environmental factors may be involved.

Physical impairments such as cleft lip, cleft palate, and tongue-tie indicate long-term problems if no intervention occurs. In each of these instances, surgery can correct the problem; however, depending on the age of the child and the severity of the original physical impairment, extensive speech therapy may still be needed.

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What's all this about stem cells? America is trailing it, Barack Obama is about to endorse it, Scottish doctors think it could cure a form of blindness, and a toddler is going all the way to China for it. Over the last month, it's been hard to miss all the news stories about stem cell therapy. We know that therapies based on stem cells are likely to be extremely beneficial to all sorts of disabled people in the future, but where are we with it all right now? I think it's time for a bit of a recap...

Stem cells are undifferentiated cells - lacking qualities that make them different or unique - which are capable of developing into any of the 200 different types of cell in the human body. They are derived from embryos, from the umbilical cord or, with greater difficulty, from the scarce stem cells in adults or children.
Stem cells can be used to grow tissues for transplantation - for example, heart muscle or brain cells or liver cells. They can also be used as models for disease, which can then be used in research - meaning better knowledge or less reliance on animal experimentation. This has recently been achieved for spinal muscular atrophy.

People who have diseases or impairments which are caused by tissue damage or degeneration can potentially be helped by stem cell therapy. For example, people with diabetes, liver disease and Parkinson's, maybe even people with spinal cord injury.

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