SPEECH

Oral Physiology Dent 207

Speech

Oral cavity only assists in breathing when nasal breathing is insufficient Mouth controls & modifies expiratory air flow

Producing a variety of sounds

Generation of sound frequency

The production of intelligible speech sounds is a modification of expiration by

Forcing outflowing air through a narrow gap Bounded by structures of variable & controllable elasticity (vocal cords)

Position, length & tension of vocal cords are controlled by the laryngeal muscles

Neural control of speech

Vagus nerve

Recurrent laryngeal nerve External laryngeal nerve Brocas area, controlled by Wernickes area

Ultimate control from cerebral cortex

Speech production is controlled from the categorical hemisphere (left)

Lesions on the representational side (right) have no effect on speech

Brocas area

Just above the Sylvian fissure Controls actual word formation & necessary adjustment of respiration By activating appropriate muscle signaling in the motor cortex

Wernickes area

In the superior temporal gyrus Linked to the Brocas area by arcuate fasciculus Concerned with

Understanding of language (spoken or written) Generation of intelligible speech

Lesions affecting speech areas

Fluent aphasia

Wernickes area or arcuate fasciculus Patient can generate a mixture of recognizable & nonsense words that do not link together into intelligible speech

Errors of articulation

Brocas area

Sound vs. speech

Sound

Control of expiration Vocal cords A mixture of frequencies Stoppage of airflow Amplification of certain frequencies By muscular activity of oral & perioral regions

Speech - sound modified by

Loudness depends on force of expiration Bony conduction vs. airborne conduction Bony sinuses

Vocal sounds become intelligible speech

Two process

Selective amplification of particular frequencies

By variation of size of resonating chambers

Controlled release of expired air Phonation

Two terms

Production & selection of frequencies (vowels)

Patterning of air release (consonants)

Articulation

Males vs. females

Later puberty of males More time for growth of laryngeal cartilages Longer vocal cords Changes in puberty

Frequency in males drops by an octave Frequency in females drops by 2-3 tones

Human ear: greatest sensitivity 1000 4000 Hz Males: 100 150 Hz Females: 200 300 Hz Singers

Voice frequency

Trained for 50 Hz or 1000 Hz The lowest is 27 Hz Highest 4000 Hz

Resonators

Vestibular, laryngeal, pharyngeal resonators

Fixed in form Fixed in form Variation of sound depends on whether used or not Not used when air is directed through the mouth Unimportant Anterior, posterior Size affected by tongue position

Nasal, paranasal sinus resonator

Labial, vestibular resonator

Oral resonator separated by the tongue into

Resonators

Vowel sound

Two formant frequency for a vowel

A lower frequency amplified by posterior oral chamber A higher frequency amplified by anterior oral chamber Changes the relative size of anterior & posterior resonators Tongue posterior a Tongue further forward i Space between tongue & palate gives different qualities of the vowel

Position of the tongue

Soft palate seals off the nasal cavity in English vowels Nasal cavity remains continuous with oropharynx in some French vowels

Clicks & consonants

Controlling the release of the vibrating air Bringing oral structure together & then separating them

Clicks

Sound produced when air flows through a low pressure zone created when articulating structures are held together then separated over a small area

Consonants

Sound produced when airflow is stopped in initiation, ending & separation of vowel sounds Classified according

Anatomical location at which airflow is impeded Degree of impedance partial / complete

Bilabial, labiodental, linguodental Lingupalatal

Alveolar Prepalatal Velar Glottal

Bilabial consonants

Nasal sound - M Plosive sound B, P At mandibular rest position

Used to determine rest position in dental prosthetics

Incomplete stoppage of airflow

Rolled sound - R Lateral sound L Fricative sound

Leaving a slit or rounded opening Th, Z, V, Y, F, S, W, Y J, CH

Affricative sound (with sudden release)

Other factors

Volume of airflow

D vs. T that Thin

Voiced consonants strong

Unvoiced consonant weak

Influence of malocclusion & dental procedures on sounds

Alteration in the volume of oral & nasal resonators Position & size of structures impeding airflow during articulation

Malocclusive & dental factors

Palatal vault height Tongue size Clefts Tonsilitis Functional abnormality of palatal muscles

Myasthenia gravis

Short upper lip Lack of lip seal Missing, malposed incisors Tied tongue Prosthetic / orthodontic appliance