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The new neuroscience of stuttering
By Amber Dance
The cause of stuttering lies in the brain . Pinpointing the problem is leading researchers to better treatments .
CREDIT : BRIAN STAUFFER / THEISPOT
After centuries of misunderstanding , research has finally tied the speech disorder to certain genes and brain alterations — and new treatments may be on the horizon
Gerald Maguire has stuttered since childhood , but you might not guess it from talking to him . For the past 25 years , Maguire — a psychiatrist at the University of California , Riverside — has been treating his disorder with antipsychotic medications not officially approved for the condition . Only with careful attention might you discern his occasional stumble on multisyllabic words like “ statistically ” and “ pharmaceutical .”
Maguire has plenty of company : More than 70 million people worldwide , including about 3 million Americans , stutter — that is , they have difficulty with the starting and timing of speech , resulting in halting and repetition . That number includes approximately 5 percent of children , many of whom outgrow the condition , and 1 percent of adults . Their numbers include President Joe Biden , deep-voiced actor James Earl Jones and actress Emily Blunt . Though those people and many others , including Maguire , have achieved career success , stuttering can contribute to social anxiety and draw ridicule or discrimination by others .