Swallowing & Dysphagia
This is the medical term for difficulty swallowing.
Dysphagia
The two small structures in your throat that vibrate together to produce your voice are called the vocal ___.
Vocal cords (or vocal folds)
This is the medical term for difficulty finding or producing words after a brain injury, such as a stroke.
Aphasia
This healthcare professional specializes in evaluating and treating hearing loss and balance disorders.
Audiologist
SLP stands for these three words.
Speech-Language Pathologist
This is the name of the tube that food travels down from your throat to your stomach.
The esophagus
This is the term for complete loss of voice, often caused by vocal cord damage or laryngeal cancer.
Aphonia
Patients are more likely to have problems with language/speech after a stroke affecting the ____ side of the brain.
Left
A common small electronic device worn in or behind the ear that amplifies sound for people with hearing loss.
Hearing aid
SLPs work in many settings. Name two places where an SLP might work.
Hospital, school, private practice, rehab clinic, nursing home, early intervention (any 2)
SLPs often modify food textures for patients with dysphagia. Name one texture level.
Puréed, minced/moist, soft & bite-sized, or regular
This is a small opening created in the neck that helps a person breathe and may require special communication and swallowing support from an SLP in a hospital.
Tracheostomy (Trach)
SLPs assess this cognitive skill — the ability to pay attention, remember information, plan, and problem-solve — often impaired after a traumatic brain injury.
Executive Functioning
This surgical implant bypasses damaged parts of the inner ear and sends electrical signals directly to the hearing nerve.
Cochlear implant
The three main areas SLPs address in their clinical work are speech, language, and this third area.
Swallowing (dysphagia)
When food or liquid accidentally enters the airway instead of the esophagus, it is called this.
Aspiration
This electronic device, held against the neck, creates a buzzing vibration that laryngectomy patients can use to produce speech.
Electrolarynx
After a stroke affecting the left frontal lobe, this type of aphasia may result in speech that is effortful and short, while understanding is often relatively preserved.
Broca’s aphasia (expressive aphasia)
This is the name of the snail-shaped structure in the inner ear responsible for converting sound vibrations into nerve signals.
The cochlea
SLPs often work closely with nurses, doctors, and this nutrition professional.
Dietician
This X-ray test lets an SLP watch swallowing in real time.
Videofluoroscopic Swallow Study (VFSS)/Modified Barium Swallow (MBS)
This is one way an SLP may help someone communicate when speaking is difficult.
Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)— gestures, writing, a communication board, etc.
This type of stroke-related speech may sound slurred or “mumbled”.
Dysarthria
This is the name for hearing ringing or buzzing when nothing is there.
Tinnitus
These healthcare workers often support SLPs in hospitals by helping carry out therapy plans, assisting with communication or swallowing strategies, and providing hands-on patient care under supervision.
Communicative Disorders Assistants (CDAs)