Speech errors and dyslalia

What are speech errors (dyslalia)?

It often happens that you as an adult notice a speech defect in your child or in yourself.  

You are often asked about this by the paediatrician, dentist or nursery school.

Here are a few examples:

an S is articulated with the tongue between the teeth instead of physiologically (alveolar, the teeth are slightly closed, the tongue is on the inner side of the molars) 

a /i/ or a /k/ is pronounced by your child as /g/.

In themselves, these speech defects are not problematic for everyday communication. However, they impair mutual understanding of speech. Furthermore, some of the articulation organs are not used or are used with too much energy when speaking. We call this phenomenon dyslalia.

Some examples: Sigmatism (S error), kappacism (K-G error), rhotacism (R error) or schetism (Sch error).

It is also common for speech defects such as lisping to lead to hoarseness or to be associated with swallowing disorders. In some cases, different sounds are affected. The technical term for this is ‘multiple dyslalia’. With multiple dyslalia, it becomes even more difficult to understand speech well. Early treatment is advisable here. 

How do dyslalia develop?

During language acquisition between the ages of 0 - 6, most children gradually learn all the sounds. It usually begins with P and B (mum and dad) and ends with L and R (approx. 4 years). It can happen that some children hear less well for a period, e.g. due to an unnoticed, non-painful middle ear infection.

Due to the hearing loss, your child cannot distinguish the correct positions of the sounds well.
Sound problems can also be caused by trauma, e.g. car accidents, strokes or neurological problems, e.g. half-sided facial paralysis. Here we speak of motor sound problems or dysarthria.

Easily treatable

Depending on the receptivity and learning ability of a child or adult, speech defects are easily treatable, provided that they are practised at home for about 10 minutes a day.

Procedure

Before starting speech therapy treatment, it is necessary to have your or your child's hearing checked by an ENT specialist to rule out any organic causes. The speech therapy prescription is then issued by the paediatrician, ENT specialist, family doctor or dentist.