Speech Therapy for Spinocerebellar Ataxia

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What is Spinocerebellar Ataxia or SCA?

• Poor muscle control that results in clumsy
  involuntary movements is called Ataxia.
• SCA refers to a group of ataxias that are
• Hereditary (caused by either a recessive or
  dominant gene)
• Known to cause harm to the cerebellum
• There are 40 types of SCA discovered so far. Each
  type is named SCA1, SCA2, and so on.
• The numbers indicate the order in which they were
  discovered.
• SCA3 is the most common type.

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Damage to the cerebellum can lead to

• Uncoordinated movements and gait
• Impaired hand-eye coordination
• Abnormal speech

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Causes of Ataxia

• Stroke
• Cerebral palsy
• Autoimmune diseases
• Vitamin deficiency
• Side effects of medication
• Alcoholism
• Genetic factors
• Viral infections
• Head trauma

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Symptoms of SCA

• Slurred speech
• Poor coordination of movement
• Inability to perform basic fine motor movements
• Dysphagia (difficulty in swallowing)
• Unsteady gait
• Tendency to trip
• Rapid back-and-forth eye movements

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Speech-related symptoms of SCA

• Brain damage disrupts the nerve signals to the
  mouth and neck muscles. This can cause the
  following speech-related conditions.

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Dysarthria

• Difficulty in speaking
• Caused by weak muscles in the face, mouth, and
  throat

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Dysphagia

• Chewing and swallowing impairment
• Caused by weak muscles in the face, mouth, and
  throat

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How does speech therapy help in SCA?

• Speech therapy helps improve the patients speech
  and verbal communication (dysarthria).
  Additionally, it also helps ease swallowing
  troubles (dysphagia). Both these symptoms can
  manifest together. Therefore it is important that
  your speech therapist designs a programme that
  helps manage both.

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Why is speech therapy important?

• SCA affects the upper and lower motor neurons.
  This leads to difficulties in breathing, chewing,
  swallowing, talking, and even smiling!
• And this is why speech therapy is essential for
  the management of SCA. An effective speech
  therapy plan will -
• Employ breathing techniques
• Improve speech and communication
• Use word games to better language processing
  skills
• Correct posture and improves eye-contact for
  effective communication
• Improve control of muscles in mouth, jaw, tongue,
  and throat
• Improve swallowing reflex and supports
  safe-swallowing with specific exercises

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Speech therapy at Plexus

• Our speech therapist will support you with a
  programme that involves the following
• Swallowing techniques
• Articulation techniques
• Pronunciation exercises
• Assistive communication devices
• Oral musculature strengthening exercises
• Plexus rehabilitation programme for SCA also
  features physiotherapy, occupational therapy and
  stem cell therapy.

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Speech therapy at Plexus

• To know more about speech therapy for SCA at
  Plexus, reach out to us on the below numbers.
• WhatsApp [phone]
• Call 91 78159 64668 (Hyderabad) 91 82299
  99888 (Bangalore)