Effect of Selegiline on Speech Performance in Parkinson’s Disease

Abstract

Comprehensive speech examinations of 10 equally affected subjects with moderate, treated Parkinson’s disease were performed before and 4 weeks following initiation of treatment with selegiline (deprenyl), with other drug therapies unchanged. Forty different measures relating to the speech processes of respiration, phonation, resonation, articulation and prosody were examined to measure changes in performance due to selegiline. Significant improvements were noted for 8 of the 40 measures, with these improvements relating to the speech processes of articulation and respiration. The potential interactive effects of comedication are discussed. In addition, previously undescribed comprehensive speech characteristics of moderate Parkinson’s disease are presented and discussed.

Speech Rehabilitation in Parkinson’s Disease

“…MAO-B inhibitors such as Deprenyl stop the degradation of DA and may potentiate the L-dopa action. Deprenyl has been shown to improve speech in both subjective and objective measures of articulation and respiration [24] . Articulatory improvements were observed in oral motor diadochokinesis and respiratory improvements were revealed in values of vital capacity and number of words pronounced per exhalation [24] .…”

“…Deprenyl has been shown to improve speech in both subjective and objective measures of articulation and respiration [24] . Articulatory improvements were observed in oral motor diadochokinesis and respiratory improvements were revealed in values of vital capacity and number of words pronounced per exhalation [24] . Though speech improvement was not found to be as significant as motor symptoms, the speech parameters were improved to a certain level by L-dopa therapy".…”

Dysarthrie bei der Parkinson-Krankheit – Phänomenologie, Pathophysiologie und therapeutische Ansätze

“…Das Anticholinergikum Trihexyphenidyl führte zu einer subjektiven Verbesserung der Sprechfähigkeit, die sich allerdings nicht objektivieren ließ [81,82]. Unter einer Monotherapie mit Selegilin wurden eine Zunahme von Artikulationsrate und -umfang sowie eine Optimierung der Sprechatmung beschrieben, auch wenn sich dies nicht positiv auf die allgemeine Sprechverständlichkeit auswirkte [83,84]. In einer Plazebo-kontrollierten Untersuchung an 12 männlichen Parkinson-Patienten mit beschleunigter Sprechrate führte die niedrigdosierte Gabe von Clonazepam zu einer Verbesserung von Sprechgeschwindigkeit und -rhythmus, allerdings ohne Einfluss auf gestörte Stimmqualität und Satzmelodie [85].…”