AOS: Which disorder describes deficits in planning and programming of speech movements?

• A. Apraxia of Speech
• B. Aphasia
• C. Dysarthria
• D. Stuttering

Answer: (A)

Planning and programming the sequence of movements needed to produce speech is a motor planning function. When this planning is impaired, the muscles can work, but organizing the precise order and timing of articulator movements for syllables and words becomes faulty. This leads to Apraxia of Speech, where speech shows inconsistent errors, groping for sounds, and difficulty initiating or sequencing words, even though language comprehension and overall intelligence are typically preserved.

Aphasia, in contrast, involves language processing problems like understanding or forming meaningful speech, not the motor sequencing of speech. Dysarthria involves neuromuscular execution problems—weakness, slurring, or incoordination of the speech muscles—rather than planning the motor sequence. Stuttering is primarily a fluency issue with interruptions in the flow of speech, not a pure deficit in planning the sequence of speech movements.