Electrical Stimulation of Brain Trialed As Aid To Treating Stutter (theguardian.com) 50
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: People who stutter are being given electrical brain stimulation in a clinical trial aimed at improving fluency without the need for grueling speech training. If shown to be effective, the technique -- which involves passing an almost imperceptible current through the brain -- could be routinely offered by speech therapists. The latest treatment, which is combined with fluency training, is not expected to completely cure people of their stutter but could potentially give them more control over it. The brain stimulation, known as transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), involves strapping electrodes on each temple and then passing a current through the head. The current is weak enough that people are either oblivious to the electrodes being switched on or feel just a slight tingling.
The stimulation increases the firing rate of neurons in certain brain regions, which scientists believe could make it quicker to learn thought patterns associated with fluent speech, and make the effects of training more permanent. In the trial, the 40 participants are asked to speak in time with a metronome, saying one syllable on every beat. During this task, people who stutter typically become completely fluent. "The idea is that if you stimulate them while they're fluent, you're reinforcing that fluent speech process," said Jennifer Chesters, a speech and language researcher at the University of Oxford who is involved in the trial. "And hopefully that will make it more likely for them to use that process in their normal life." Each time a neuron fires in the brain, its connections with neighbouring neurons are strengthened or weakened slightly -- this is how learning occurs. With stimulation, the threshold for neurons firing is lower, so this could accelerate the rewiring that occurs during fluency training.
The stimulation increases the firing rate of neurons in certain brain regions, which scientists believe could make it quicker to learn thought patterns associated with fluent speech, and make the effects of training more permanent. In the trial, the 40 participants are asked to speak in time with a metronome, saying one syllable on every beat. During this task, people who stutter typically become completely fluent. "The idea is that if you stimulate them while they're fluent, you're reinforcing that fluent speech process," said Jennifer Chesters, a speech and language researcher at the University of Oxford who is involved in the trial. "And hopefully that will make it more likely for them to use that process in their normal life." Each time a neuron fires in the brain, its connections with neighbouring neurons are strengthened or weakened slightly -- this is how learning occurs. With stimulation, the threshold for neurons firing is lower, so this could accelerate the rewiring that occurs during fluency training.
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"I've been giving myself shock treatments."
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Just goes to show how far ahead of its time that movie was.
Ah, 1985 - good times.
I think the character's name was "Bodie", by the way....
Sounds a bit like this Alpha wave treatment (Score:1)
I wonder if these patients have been checked for Alpha wave issues. It sounds like a problem that could be caused by sync issues within the brain.
I'm underwhelmed. (Score:3)
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GP didn't say it has to be your balls.
As a 70-year Stutterer (Score:2, Insightful)
Traditional speech therapy only works for a short time. It isn't a cure. It's like the myriad "cures" sold by the pharmaceutical companies. The pills, eye drops, etc., don't cure chronic conditions - No profit in that. You need to use these for your entire life. What this world needs is actual cures, and not just palliatives.