Palilalia Meaning, Definition, Symptoms, Causes, Treatment in Children and Adults

Palilalia is a speech disorder that develops over time and is marked by repeating words or phrases at a faster rate and with less volume. The disease has been linked to bilateral subcortical neuropathology.

According to its etymology, the word "Palilalia" has two parts: páli, which means "again," and laló, which means "say." Both of these words are derived from the Greek language. Palilalia, also known as paliprasia, is connected with illnesses such as Tourette syndrome, autism, and certain dementias.

Definition

Palilalia is defined as the involuntary repetition of speech, also known as autoecholalia or pathologic reiterative utterances. Repetition usually involves words and sentences. Repeated sounds and syllables are not typically included in definitions of palilalia, but they may be present in people who speak a palilalic language.

Symptoms

The following is a brief overview of palilalia's clinical features: Repeated words and phrases with stereotypical prosody, but frequently at a faster tempo and gradually lower volume, similar to the accelerated speech and reduced volume seen in hypokinetic dysarthria. Palilalia, however, is not always accompanied by dysarthria, and it is not always characterized by a gradual increase in velocity and decrease in volume as it is repeated.

Repetition can happen a lot; one case study found that it happened up to 52 times in a single event! Repetition occurs more frequently during conversation, storytelling, and elicited speech than it does during reading, repetition, and automated actions like counting. The incidence of repetition varies among tasks. Although they can happen anywhere in an utterance, repetitions tend to happen more frequently at the conclusion of sentences.

Causes

Palilalia has been linked to a number of disorders, such as

• Postencephalitic parkinsonism
• Alzheimer's disease
• Pick's disease
• Bilateral cerebral Calcinosis
• Multiple strokes
• Midbrain stroke
• Seizures
• Posttraumatic encephalopathy
• Multiple sclerosis
• Tourette's syndrome
• Traumatic basal ganglia lesions

Palilalic repeats and parasagittal meningiomas in the vicinity of the secondary motor area have also been linked. As some of the possible reasons of palilalia suggest, the problem is often triggered by issues in both basal ganglia. This conforms with the fact that palilalia is linked to hypokinetic dysarthria. Bilateral involvement of the frontal lobes on both sides of the head has also been linked to the condition on occasion; however, the validity of this association has been called into question.

Treatment

First, it must be remembered that Palilalia is diagnosed as a language and psychological illness when it is thought to negatively impact the patient's quality of life by causing discomfort or suffering.

When determining the appropriate course of treatment, doctors typically consider the patient's level of palilalia involvement in their everyday lives, as well as other variables including the frequency and length of the patient's symptoms. A patient's sleep quality, for instance, may be impacted by palilalia's high frequency and duration of involuntary repetitions.

There is undoubtedly no method that can eliminate repetitions permanently, but there are treatments that reduce these symptoms, such as behavioral therapy provided by psychologists. Speech therapists may be engaged in conjunction with these treatments.

As we've already discussed, symptoms can have a negative influence on a patient's quality of life. In more severe cases, neuroleptic medications may be taken on a specialist's advice.

In any event, it is imperative that the children's guardians or parents stay vigilant in order to keep the kids out of stressful situations. It is also advised for parents to teach their children relaxation skills that will keep them calm during stressful situations and frequent repetition.