PPAOS is a condition that gradually affects speaking aloud. The brain slowly loses the ability to plan how speech sounds are put together. It is caused by a brain disease. Unlike stroke-related apraxia of speech, which happens suddenly, PPAOS begins with small speech problems and worsens over time.
Many people with PPAOS report: “I know the word, but I can’t get it out right.” It’s helpful to think of PPAOS as a progressive “speech planning” issue — it becomes harder to smoothly and accurately say words that were once easy to produce.
PPAOS is a motor speech disorder, not a language disorder. Over time, other problems might come up, like grammar trouble or “dysarthria” (difficulty controlling of the muscles of speech).
PPAOS is caused by a gradual loss of function within brain cells in the areas of the brain that plan movements for speech. These changes happen over time due to a brain disease that slowly gets worse. Eventually, those parts of the brain shrink (or “atrophy”).
PPAOS is most often caused by Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) because of buildup of a protein tangle called 4-repeat tau. This is different from Alzheimer’s disease, which usually causes memory problems first.
FTD is a group of brain diseases that affect the frontal and/or temporal lobes of the brain. In PPAOS, the disease focuses in on the parts of the brain that plan speech movements.
FTD Statistics
There are different patterns of speech problems in PPAOS. Each has different effects on the way you sound:
Prosodic AOS
Phonetic AOS
People with PPAOS often have Prosodic AOS as their main speech problem. People with PPAOS can also have Phonetic AOS. Many people have a mix of both.
Diagnosing PPAOS usually takes a team. You may see several doctors, neuropsychologists, and speech-language pathologists. You may get brain scans to help figure out the problem.
Common steps include:
Accurate diagnosis is key. PPAOS is not well known by many medical providers. Many people have to go to specialty medical centers at universities before they get a correct diagnosis. Contact us for personalized guidance.
There is currently no cure for PPAOS, but speech-language therapy can support communication and quality of life.
Voice banking is a way to record your speech before it becomes too hard to talk. You can use Personal Voice on the iPhone, and similar tools on other devices.
Speech-language therapy for PPAOS may include:
Learn more about speech-language therapy for PPAOS and communication tools
People with PPAOS tend to have longer survival times from symptom onset, compared with nfvPPA and some other types of PPA.
PPAOS progression looks different for everyone. Some people only have apraxia of speech for many years. Some people gradually develop:
In general, PPAOS stays centered on speech but may evolves into a broader neurological syndrome. Early planning can help reduce stress later.
