Introduction:
Language is a skill that is used automatically to participate in conversations without thinking about the computations taking place in the brain during speech. Many children during their early childhood have trouble communicating with others. Even though most children overcome these problems as they grow up, some will continue having them. Language disorders may create problems in understanding and speaking the language. Studies about language disorders have paved the way for understanding brain-language relationships.
What Is Language?
Language is a complex communication system consisting of a group of sounds and written symbols used by the people of a particular region for writing or talking. It is considered to be the primary tool for communication. It enables a person to write down their ideas and read what others have said. Research shows that people who know multiple languages have better creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills.
What Are Language Disorders?
Language disorders can be characterized by issues with spoken, written, and other forms of language, thereby causing trouble in expressing themselves. People with language disorders may struggle with either spoken language or written language. Some people have problems with both written and spoken languages. Language disorder is different from speech disorder. A person with a speech disorder has trouble making sounds, whereas a person with a language disorder can produce sounds but has difficulty using them for communication.
What Are the Types of Language Disorders?
There are three main types of language disorders. They are as follows:
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Expressive Language Disorder: People with expressive language disorder have difficulty conveying the message when they talk to others. They may understand what others talk about but struggle to express their thoughts, ideas, and feelings through language to others. They have difficulty putting words together to form sentences that make sense.
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Receptive Language Disorder: People with receptive language disorder have difficulty understanding the meaning of what others talk about. Hence people having receptive language disorder respond to others in a way that does not make sense.
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Mixed Receptive-Expressive Language Disorder: Mixed receptive-expressive language is characterized by the struggle in both understanding and using language. People have trouble understanding what others say and also being understood by others.
What Is the Neuropsychology of Language?
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Language learning is one of the basic human traits which involves developmental changes within the brain. During language development, the brain stores linguistic information and adapts to the grammatical aspects of the language.
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In the 19th century, studies showed that specific language and speech functions were associated with distinct areas present in the brain's left hemisphere, later known as Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas.
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Recent advancements in brain imaging showed the differences in the association of structural and functional brain activity with language processing in healthy people and those with language disorders.
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The latest neuroimaging studies show that language is mediated by a broad range of neural networks that are extended through cortical and subcortical regions of the brain and their interconnecting pathways. Cortical areas of the brain are responsible for functions like language, memory, thinking, problem solving, emotions, and functions related to the senses. Subcortical areas of the brain are associated with movements, postural stability, emotions, and hormone production.
What Is the Neuropsychology of Language Disorders?
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The oldest incident of language disorder was recorded among Egyptians by Edwin Smith when a head-injured man became speechless on applying pressure to his injury site. Incidents accounting for speech loss following brain injury also have been recorded in ancient times.
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Pierre Paul Broca was the first person to associate a specific region within the brain with language. After observing patients with language disorders, it was concluded that the disorder was caused by damage or an area of softening in the inferior frontal gyrus. Ridges surrounded by fissures cover the surface of the brain. The ridges are known as the gyrus or gyri, and the fissures are known as the sulcus or sulci. The inferior frontal gyrus is the lowest-placed gyrus and plays a major role in speech and language production. Broca believed that the injury responsible for causing language disorder was always on the left side of the brain, and the area was known as Broca’s area.
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Thirteen years later, Carl Wernicke found that language disorder was associated with the back portion of the left superior temporal gyrus, later known as Wernicke’s area. The left superior temporal gyrus of the brain is associated with language comprehension and auditory short-term memory. Later Wernicke clubbed studies with Broca’s findings and concluded that language disorders could also occur due to the injury to the connecting pathways which transmitted information from Wernicke’s to Broca’s areas.
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A language disorder that occurs due to brain damage is known as aphasia. People with aphasia struggle with writing, reading, speaking, and understanding. The brain is divided into left and right halves. Since most people have language skills associated with the left half of the brain, damage to the left side causes language problems. Injury to the right half of the brain causes problems related to memory power and attention. Brain injury can also affect the movement of mouth muscles, which prevents the mouth from moving the right way to say words, known as apraxia.
How to Treat Language Disorders?
The treatment of language disorders involves family members, speech-language pathologists, teachers, and other healthcare professionals. The treatment methods are as follows:
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Language Therapy: Speech and language therapy is the most commonly employed treatment option for language disorders. This therapy involves the participation of the patient in a one-on-one treatment session with a speech-language therapist or attending group sessions. The speech-language therapist would treat the patient depending on the cause and nature of the condition.
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Psychological Therapy: The trouble in understanding language and communicating with others would lead to frustration and mental health issues in patients. In such patients, counseling may be required to treat behavioral and emotional issues.
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Others: These are mainly the homecare methods that can be incorporated by family members and teachers to help patients with language disorders. Simple steps like speaking slowly and clearly while asking a question to the patient, making the patient feel relaxed, waiting calmly for the patient’s response, and asking the patient to put the instructions in their own words after hearing a narration would help the patient to a great extent. As children with language disorders are reluctant to participate in activities involving talking, teachers should prepare such children in advance for upcoming discussions.
Conclusion:
Effective communication plays a vital role in building relationships at school, work, and social settings. Studies about language disorders have increased the knowledge about the effect of brain injuries on language. Recent advancements in studies about the neural mechanisms of speech and language disorders have shown that language is neither localized nor broadly distributed in the brain, but it is a combination of both. Even though predicting the future of language disorders is a challenge, the greatest hope is to witness innovations in the treatment to facilitate neural recovery in brain-injured individuals. Advancements in neuroimaging techniques combined with careful clinical assessment would help to understand the processing of language in the human brain and assist patients in recovering from brain injury, thereby improving the quality of life of patients with language disorders.
