What is foreign accent syndrome?
Foreign accent syndrome is a sudden onset neurological condition, causing an individual to stop producing vocal sounds of their native language.
This new speech pattern results in the person sounding like they are speaking in a foreign accent.
What are the causes of foreign accent syndrome?
Foreign accent syndrome is caused by damage to the part of the brain that causes melody and rhythm of speech.
This can happen as a symptom of:
- Stroke
- A bleed on the brain
- Head injury
- Multiple sclerosis (MS)
- A brain tumour
What are the symptoms of foreign accent syndrome?
Those with foreign accent syndrome will speak in an unusual and distorted pattern, resulting from:
- Moving the tongue or jaw differently, affecting sound quality.
- Using incorrect words, or substituting them.
- Putting sentences in the wrong order.
- Producing longer and lower vowel sounds, like changing the English ‘yeah’ to the German ‘yah’.
Treatment options vary, from treating the underlying cause, to speech therapy and counselling.
The ability to restore a persons accent varies on the individual and the underlying cause.
