Communication Disorders and Their Impact on Human Health

Introduction:

Communication disorders impact a person's capacity to recognize, receive, process, and grasp the ideas or symbols required for communication. A person can convey information, express their thoughts and feelings, and comprehend the thoughts, feelings, and views of others through communication. Unfortunately, according to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), five to ten percent of Americans suffer from communication difficulties.

What Are Communication Disorders?

A class of neurodevelopmental abnormalities called communication disorders includes conditions where language and speech-related issues persist over time. Language proficiency consists of two primary components: production (the capacity to express one's ideas through words and phrases) and comprehension (the ability to interpret what others say). Speech explicitly refers to the audio produced orally. Communication disorders may present in children and adults with language and speech difficulties.

What Are the Types of Communication Disorders?

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) classifies communication disorders into four types. They are as follows:

1. Speech Disorder:

• A speech disorder is a problem with how speech sounds are articulated, with fluency or with voice.

• An articulation disorder is the abnormal production of vocal sounds that may impede understanding and is characterized by substitutions, omissions, additions, or distortions.

• Fluency disorders are unusual rates, rhythms, and repetitions of sounds, syllables, words, and phrases that disrupt the flow of speech. Excessive stress, aggressive behavior, and secondary mannerisms may accompany this.

• An individual with a voice problem will exhibit abnormal vocal quality, pitch, loudness, resonance, and length that is out of character for their age and sex.

2. Language disorder:

The ability to understand or use spoken, written, or language disorders compromise other symbol systems. They could involve phonology, morphology, syntax, language content, and language function issues.

• Phonology: The phonological system of a language refers to the principles that control how sounds are combined.

• Morphology: The system that controls word formation and word structure.

• Syntax: The rules guiding the arrangement of words to create sentences and the connections between sentence elements are known as syntax.

• Language Content: The system that controls how words and sentences are understood is semantics.

• Language Function: Pragmatics is the system that blends linguistic elements into functional and socially acceptable communication.

3. Hearing Disorder:

• Abnormal sensitivity of the physiological auditory system leads to hearing disorders.

• The creation, understanding, maintenance, and production of speech and language may all need to be improved by a hearing problem.

• According to challenges with auditory information detection, recognition, discrimination, understanding, and perception, hearing problems are categorized.

• Deaf or hard of hearing are two terms used to describe people with hearing impairment.

  • Deaf: Deafness is described as a hearing impairment that significantly impairs an individual's ability to communicate orally and aurally to the point where another sensory channel may be used as the dominant input for communication.

  • Hard of Hearing: A hearing disorder, whether temporary or permanent, that negatively impacts a person's capacity for communication is called hard of hearing. The ear serves as the hard-of-hearing person's primary sensory input for communication.

4. Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD):

• The ASHA claims that CAPD is caused by issues with the part of the brain responsible for interpreting auditory signals and auditory processing information.

• These issues are not brought on by an intellectual disability or ear difficulties with hearing sensitivity.

What Are the Causes of Communication Disorders?

Communication difficulties frequently have unknown causes. Communication disorders can be acquired or developed over time. Some reasons are as follows:

• Exposure to poisons and other substances during pregnancy.

• Brain tumors or traumatic injuries to the communication center of the brain.

• Stroke and additional neurological conditions.

• Structural defects like cleft lip and cleft palate.

• Vocal cord damage brought on by mistreatment and abuse.

• Viral infection.

• Genetic factors.

What Are the Different Ways That Language Disorders Can Affect Students in School?

• When a student has a language disorder, their academic performance may suffer. For instance, there can be issues with comprehending and following directions, organizing ideas, and word retrieval. In addition, language issues indicate the challenges with reading comprehension and the difficulties that follow (giving details, summarizing, and recognizing the critical point).

• When utilizing language to communicate their thoughts, respond to questions, elaborate on their answers, and provide information, people with language disorders may also have problems. The difficulties may also impair written language skills, sometimes in the form of issues with outlining questions, adding details, and writing down thoughts, which makes it challenging to meet the requirements for written language. Consequently, meeting the general curriculum's needs for written language will take a lot of work.

• Language-related practical issues can have social repercussions, such as making it difficult to engage with others. Lack of awareness of social norms and conversational skills can result in social exclusion or isolation, reluctance to communicate with peers, and trouble holding conversations, resulting in decreased motivation, self-esteem, confidence, and difficulties forming and sustaining social connections.

• Language disorders cause behavior issues resulting from frustration, social disengagement, frequent conflicts, unwillingness to participate in class discussions, and loss of concentration in the classroom. These pupils may also need help understanding the need to follow or comply with rules. They may use unhealthy coping strategies, including bullying, misbehavior, and skipping class. These pupils might be unable to express their frustrations or explain their behavior in language.

What Are the Impacts of Communication Disorders on Human Life?

Here are a few of the many ways in which this impairment may have an impact on a person.

• Inability to Form and Maintain Friendships: These conditions might make it difficult for sufferers to hear or comprehend. They frequently shy away from social situations out of fear of looking foolish, which causes them to isolate themselves. These individuals may feel inadequate and unable to stand on their own in social circumstances because social interactions are essential for developing self-esteem and personality. A communication issue prevents the individual from comprehending the give-and-take nature of the discussion, making him more likely to dominate the conversation or respond inappropriately, which thus affects the person's capacity to make and keep friends.

• Differently Handled: People, especially kids, who have difficulty producing or understanding language frequently get unfavorable treatment. Those who stutter, especially those with a childhood-onset fluency disorder, may be exceptionally intelligent, but because of their impairment, they may appear to be at a late pace.

• Impaired Adult Function: They might also need help comprehending a repair manual or a job description. In addition, they frequently struggle to complete tasks at work and have social issues effectively.

• Compounding Aging-Related problems: Impaired hearing, vision, and cognition are just a few of the issues associated with aging. These conditions can cause isolation and additional deterioration, but when a communication impairment is also present, the consequences for an older adult can be severe.

Can Communication Disorders Be Avoided?

Other than taking precautions to prevent brain injuries, there is no known technique to avoid communication problems. However, prompt identification and treatment can lessen the effects of the diseases and aid both children and adults in learning to deal with their difficulties.

Who Is Most Susceptible to Communication Problems?

Those with a family history of communication difficulties are more vulnerable to the disorder. In addition, brain damage raises a person's likelihood of developing a communication impairment.

How Is Communication Disorders Diagnosed?

• A healthcare professional should rule out hearing loss or other physical issues affecting the patient's communication ability before diagnosing a communication disorder.

• A thorough evaluation, which is often carried out by a speech-language pathologist or another similarly certified practitioner, will determine the presence of a communication disorder.

• As communication disorders are believed to have a significant genetic component, this assessment will often include interviews with the person and their parents, symptom questionnaires, and a family medical history.

How to Treat Communication Disorders?

• Communication disorders are treated by working with a speech-language therapist. Depending on the nature and degree of the communication disorder, a distinct strategy is taken. One-on-one or group therapy sessions are both possible.

• Before or concurrently with speech therapy sessions, a speech-language pathologist will work with the rehabilitation team, which includes a physical and occupational therapist, to address other essential skills.

• For a highly individualized treatment plan, the entire family, including medical professionals and teachers, is frequently included in a highly individualized treatment plan.

Conclusion:

At every stage of life, communication is essential. Interventions can happen anytime, but they work best when the problems are identified and treated quickly. The already challenging task of negotiating social and technological demands may become even more difficult due to communication impairments.