• Dysarthria is a motor speech abnormality that commonly results from stroke and is related to focal muscular deficits in the face.

• One of the most challenging aspects of recognizing dysarthria relates to distinguishing it from apraxia. 

• Apraxia has nothing to do with a focal motor deficit, but rather a cortical deficit which results in an inability to optimally execute the function of the facial musculature.

• Isolated dysarthria without other neurologic deficit, termed pure dysarthria, is rare and thought to result from multiple lacunar infarcts causing hypoperfusion of the frontal cortex.

References

• Okuda, et al. "Cerebral Blood Flow in Pure Dysarthria:  Role of Frontal Cortical Hypoperfusion."  Stroke 30:  109-13. 1999.