Apraxia ??? Anyone??? | Autism PDD

My son is 31 months and still not talking hardly at all. He can say blue, mama, dog, and that is about it. He learned about 20 signs but he still won't use them withour prompting. His old ABA therapist said he may have aproxia and I freaked out! I don't think he does, becuase he tries to talk and can copy a lot of sounds but the words don't come. I think he will talk but unsure when.

i think you are very lucky to get that

my four year old has never said a word not one

i would love for him to say anything

he has very little communication he can not even understand pecs we use one at the moment slow and steady

i have for thre years done the son-rise

and he is interacting with me more we get a little eye contact and that moment when that childs eyes hits mine is the most awe inspiring event i ever have or will have happened to me

think of what your child can do and not what he carnt

because he is special wether he can or cannot talk

and rememebr

THE SOONER THEY START TO TALK

THE SOONER THEY ANSWER BACK LOL

be thankfull for what you have hun

i would give my very soul to hear those words from my precious

love shell

I have been told by 3 SLP's that ds is apraxic! It is confusing! THe website Apraxiakids is good...but it is still confusing! I also have 1 SLP that says he isnt apraxic

What are the types and causes of apraxia?

There are two main types of speech apraxia: acquired apraxia of speech and developmental apraxia of speech. Acquired apraxia of speech can affect a person at any age, although it most typically occurs in adults. It is caused by damage to the parts of the brain that are involved in speaking, and involves the loss or impairment of existing speech abilities. The disorder may result from a stroke, head injury, tumor, or other illness affecting the brain. Acquired apraxia of speech may occur together with muscle weakness affecting speech production (dysarthria) or language difficulties caused by damage to the nervous system (aphasia).

Developmental apraxia of speech (DAS) occurs in children and is present from birth. It appears to affect more boys than girls. This speech disorder goes by several other names, including developmental verbal apraxia, developmental verbal dyspraxia, articulatory apraxia, and childhood apraxia of speech. DAS is different from what is known as a developmental delay of speech, in which a child follows the "typical" path of speech development but does so more slowly than normal.

The cause or causes of DAS are not yet known. Some scientists believe that DAS is a disorder related to a child's overall language development. Others believe it is a neurological disorder that affects the brain's ability to send the proper signals to move the muscles involved in speech. However, brain imaging and other studies have not found evidence of specific brain lesions or differences in brain structure in children with DAS. Children with DAS often have family members who have a history of communication disorders or learning disabilities. This observation and recent research findings suggest that genetic factors may play a role in the disorder.

What are the symptoms?

People with either form of apraxia of speech may have a number of different speech characteristics, or symptoms. One of the most notable symptoms is difficulty putting sounds and syllables together in the correct order to form words. Longer or more complex words are usually harder to say than shorter or simpler words. People with apraxia of speech also tend to make inconsistent mistakes when speaking. For example, they may say a difficult word correctly but then have trouble repeating it, or they may be able to say a particular sound one day and have trouble with the same sound the next day. People with apraxia of speech often appear to be groping for the right sound or word, and may try saying a word several times before they say it correctly. Another common characteristic of apraxia of speech is the incorrect use of "prosody" -- that is, the varying rhythms, stresses, and inflections of speech that are used to help express meaning.

Children with developmental apraxia of speech generally can understand language much better than they are able to use language to express themselves. Some children with the disorder may also have other problems. These can include other speech problems, such as dysarthria; language problems such as poor vocabulary, incorrect grammar, and difficulty in clearly organizing spoken information; problems with reading, writing, spelling, or math; coordination or "motor-skill" problems; and chewing and swallowing difficulties.

The severity of both acquired and developmental apraxia of speech varies from person to person. Apraxia can be so mild that a person has trouble with very few speech sounds or only has occasional problems pronouncing words with many syllables. In the most severe cases, a person may not be able to communicate effectively with speech, and may need the help of alternative or additional communication methods.

How is it diagnosed?

Professionals known as speech-language pathologists play a key role in diagnosing and treating apraxia of speech. There is no single factor or test that can be used to diagnose apraxia. In addition, speech-language experts do not agree about which specific symptoms are part of developmental apraxia. The person making the diagnosis generally looks for the presence of some, or many, of a group of symptoms, including those described above. Ruling out other contributing factors, such as muscle weakness or language-comprehension problems, can also help with the diagnosis.

To diagnose developmental apraxia of speech, parents and professionals may need to observe a child's speech over a period of time. In formal testing for both acquired and developmental apraxia, the speech-language pathologist may ask the person to perform speech tasks such as repeating a particular word several times or repeating a list of words of increasing length (for example, love, loving, lovingly). For acquired apraxia of speech, a speech-language pathologist may also examine a person's ability to converse, read, write, and perform non-speech movements. Brain-imaging tests such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may also be used to help distinguish acquired apraxia of speech from other communication disorders in people who have experienced brain damage.

How is it treated?

In some cases, people with acquired apraxia of speech recover some or all of their speech abilities on their own. This is called spontaneous recovery. Children with developmental apraxia of speech will not outgrow the problem on their own. Speech-language therapy is often helpful for these children and for people with acquired apraxia who do not spontaneously recover all of their speech abilities.

Speech-language pathologists use different approaches to treat apraxia of speech, and no single approach has been proven to be the most effective. Therapy is tailored to the individual and is designed to treat other speech or language problems that may occur together with apraxia. Each person responds differently to therapy, and some people will make more progress than others. People with apraxia of speech usually need frequent and intensive one-on-one therapy. Support and encouragement from family members and friends are also important.

In severe cases, people with acquired or developmental apraxia of speech may need to use other ways to express themselves. These might include formal or informal sign language, a language notebook with pictures or written words that the person can show to other people, or an electronic communication device such as a portable computer that writes and produces speech.

Have you heard of the book, "The Late Talker"? I purchased that book when I thought dd had apraxia. It turned out at the time it was more of a phonological processing disorder with some apraxia components, but she had a lot of consistent speech which is not typical with apraxia. (albeit totally messed up sound system).

There is also a yahoo group called childrensapraxinet that I believe was founded by one or two of the authors of that book. You will probably find that group helpful.

My dd who is 5 was just dx as PDDNOS, but I do think treating her as a phonological processing disorder w/ some apraxia components was correct for what we knew at the time. We did a lot of drill and kill to get her sound system back on track. I used a lot of those Webber speech cards for specific issues she had (ie: final consonant deletion was an issue for her until about 3 1/2.) My dd also had low tone in her face so we did facial exercises and things like bubbles, whistles, etc. to try to help with that.

HTH

kdchaos39317.7975578704

My little one is both PDD-NOS and apraxic. He was speech delayed (expressive) although he was using about seventy signs when he finally started talking at 30 months. He is also very social, and he imitates, plays and points although we had to teach him these things. He is now 39 months and has just started full day pre-K in the school system. He is receiving speech services through the school 2x week to start with another IEP in six weeks time to reevaluate (his articulation is in the 3rd percentile

Apraxia and autism can be co-morbid, and if your son is experiencing a receptive language delay also it is possible that he may receive a dual dx. You will want to double up on the speech....lots of language based therapy to address the autism and lots of oral motor to address the apraxic. Good Luck!

[QUOTE=JulieA]

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Julie,

My dd's artic. was below the 1 percentile at age 3 and was around 20th at age 4. Just wanted to give you some hope. I was really down in the dumps with her testing at age 3 but we drilled and drilled and finally got it to improve.
kdchaos39317.8038541667

Woah- I was just talking with Trinitys ST about this yesterday. She said it is really hard to tell at her age (2.5) Either way we would be doing the same things. She has always said she suspects PDD but so far no DX...she is somewhat social and has started pointing the biggest thing was her regression in speech. Her receptive language is amazing but she still is almost non verbal.

~Nicole

Jenn,

Thanks for the encouragement. We get so very frustrated with Adam's speech. HE is a GREAT communicator...talks up a storm, but the articulation is just terrible. He has initial consonant deletion (consistent with apraxia) and then also middle and final consonant deletion and it is very, very inconsistent. He could say one word five times in a row and it would sound different every single time. They are starting to suggest now that he may have phonological issues on top of the apraxia....GREAT I just gave him his first Methyl B12 shot tonight and I am hoping that will help alot with his articulation (according to the DAN! doc it should). Thanks for the encouragement and the hope...it means it alot. It's wonderful to watch him progress so quickly with the autism issues, but incredibly painful to watch him try so hard to play with other kids and then not be understood by them

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It is hard when there are so many things going on. It is hard to pinpoint what is causing what. At least that is how I feel. My dd still has a few articulation things, but she is understood most of the time so they are minor and probably closer to age appropriate than her other issues.

Good luck with the shot! Hope it helps.

Well, our privately funded speech therapist is saying my ds (3 yrs. old) might have apraxia!!
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