Stutter News and Research

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New compound blocks genetic cause of familial ALS and frontotemporal dementia

Since the ice bucket challenge went viral in 2014, raising awareness and funding for ALS research, scientists have learned much about a disease that disconnects muscles from nerves, leading to muscle atrophy and eventual death. Their ultimate goal is to create medications capable of stopping ALS in its tracks.

18 Dec 2018

New research lays out potential path for treatment of Huntington’s disease

New research gives scientists a clearer picture of what is happening in the brains of people with Huntington's disease and lays out a potential path for treatment.

14 Dec 2018

Research shines new, explanatory light on link between obesity and cancer

Scientists have made a major discovery that shines a new, explanatory light on the link between obesity and cancer. Their research confirms why the body's immune surveillance systems - led by cancer-fighting Natural Killer cells - stutter and fail in the presence of excess fat.

12 Nov 2018

Interweaving anxiety disorder associated with stuttering remains unrecognized

While stuttering impacts the lives of approximately 1-2 percent of adults and around 4-5 percent of children, the mental health impact of this disorder largely remains unrecognized.

23 Oct 2018

UTSA scientists explore stuttering and develop new technology to optimize brain function

A team of researchers at The University of Texas at San Antonio received a two-year, $387,000 grant, from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to develop technology that will identify brain activity patterns that contribute to stuttering and use that technology to train people how to optimize brain functions.

31 May 2018

Scientists gain crucial insights into cause of stuttering

One percent of adults and five percent of children are unable to achieve what most of us take for granted--speaking fluently. Instead, they struggle with words, often repeating the beginning of a word, for example "G-g-g-g-g-ood morning" or get stuck with single sounds, such as "Ja" for "January" although they know exactly what they want to say.

12 Dec 2017

Clear recommendations can be given only for few stutter therapies, say experts

About 1% of children and adolescents, 0.2% of women, and 0.8% of men suffer from stuttering. However, based on the available studies, clear recommendations can be given only for a few of the currently available stutter therapies.

14 Jul 2017

Stuttering linked to reductions in blood flow in the brain area that controls speech production

A study led by researchers at Children's Hospital Los Angeles demonstrates what lead investigator Bradley Peterson, MD, calls "a critical mass of evidence" of a common underlying lifelong vulnerability in both children and adults who stutter.

4 Jan 2017

Stuttering linked to changes in speech and language-based brain circuits

Researchers at Children's Hospital Los Angeles have conducted the first study of its kind, using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to look at brain regions in both adults and children who stutter.

23 Nov 2016

Mouse model offers insight into molecular, neurological basis of stuttering

Mice that vocalize in a repetitive, halting pattern similar to human stuttering may provide insight into a condition that has perplexed scientists for centuries, according to a new study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the National Institutes of Health.

16 Apr 2016

Songbirds may help researchers find cure for Huntington’s disease

Many neurological disorders can rob someone of the ability to speak clearly, causing them to stutter, mispronounce words, and struggle to put together coherent sentences. However, the molecular and neurological dysfunctions that cause these symptoms aren't well understood. Recent work at The Rockefeller University may give researchers a new tool to better study these vocal and speech impairments, particularly in Huntington's disease.

6 Oct 2015

First-of-its-kind DNA bank aims at advancing research into genetics of stuttering

Scientists at the University of Alberta's Institute for Stuttering Treatment and Research want Albertans to give a spit -- five millilitres to be precise -- to help find the cause and a cure for stuttering.

21 May 2015

Cancer Research UK scientists find over 400 'blind spots' in DNA

Cancer Research UK scientists have found more than 400 'blind spots' in DNA which could hide cancer-causing gene faults, according to research published today (Friday) in Cancer Research.

16 Nov 2014

Political cartoon: 'Expensive Stutter?'

Kaiser Health News provides a fresh take on health policy developments with "Expensive Stutter?" by Roy Delgado.

1 Oct 2014

Children who stutter have less grey matter in brain regions responsible for speech production

A new study by a University of Alberta researcher shows that children who stutter have less grey matter in key regions of the brain responsible for speech production than children who do not stutter.

11 Oct 2013

University of Alberta researchers help children with Down syndrome

Researchers from the University of Alberta are helping children with Down syndrome who stutter find their voice and speak with ease.

26 Feb 2013

Language processing deficits may occur at stuttering onset

A study of preschool-age children has shown key differences in the neural networks mediating language processing between those who stutter and those who do not.

31 Jan 2013

Partners should be involved in speech therapy

The partners of individuals who stutter should be involved in stuttering treatment, researchers advise.

19 Dec 2012

Oscillation in brain activity influences listening process

Naturally, our brain activity waxes and wanes. When listening, this oscillation synchronizes to the sounds we are hearing. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences have found that this influences the way we listen. Hearing abilities also oscillate and depend on the exact timing of one's brain rhythms. This discovery that sound, brain, and behaviour are so intimately coupled will help us to learn more about listening abilities in hearing loss.

15 Nov 2012