Logopathy

LOGOPATHY (from Greek logos - speech and pathos - suffering), speech disorders, which include dysphasia, dysarthria, and dystomias. Speech disorder known as dysphasia manifests in clonic, tonic, and atonic forms. The clonic form, or logoclonia, is characterized by spasmodic repetition of a syllable or word; in the tonic form, there is a sudden delay in pronunciation of certain words due to prolonged spasm of the speech apparatus; in the atonic form, there is a periodic delay in speech reaction due to inertia of the speech musculature. Dysarthrias, or difficulties in pronunciation of words, are observed in various nervous diseases, e.g., in disseminated sclerosis, progressive paralysis, etc. Dystomias, or defects in pronunciation, consist of the fact that with normal speech reaction there is a defect in pronunciation of a certain letter, e.g., l and r, or all letters of a certain group, e.g., sibilants, etc.; dystomias often occur with anomalies in the structure of teeth and soft palate.

Lit.-see lit. to art. Logopedics and Stuttering.