Long-term effects on speech of chronic cerebellar stimulation in cerebral palsy

Chronic cerebellar stimulation (CCS) of the anterior lobe is undertaken for relief or motor dysfunction in cerebral palsy, but the long-term effect on speech and voice has been uncertain. The present study evaluated speech before cerebellar stimulation and between one year and two years, seven months following stimulation in nine patients with congenital cerebral palsy and one patient with traumatic brain damage. Severity of dysarthria was not significantly altered as assessed by a panel of listeners. No patient demonstrated deteriorations in speech. Only two of the 10 patients showed small positive changes in the majority of parameters evaluated including rate, articulation, and voice.