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From: Nathan Lavid
Date: 10/4/02
Time: 1:43:51 AM
Remote Name: 66.171.52.61
There is not much information concerning the emotional influence of stuttering as it pertains to brain function. However, there is a growing body of literature addressing the influence of emotional trauma, such as rape, on brain function and this research implicates increased activity in the hippocampus. The hippocampus is involved in the formation of memories, part of the limbic system (roughly the emotional area of the brain and phylogenically old – even though considered part of the neocortex), and is highly plastic. The current theory concerning traumatic emotional experiences and memory of such experiences is that these events are etched in the hippocampus due to the malleability of the structure rather than due to that it is a phylogenically old area of the brain. Phylogenically old structures, such as the brain stem, are considered more resistant to gene-environment influence. The hippocampus seems to break this general trend.
As this relates to stuttering, neuroimaging data hasn’t show the hippocampus to be directly involved in dysfluency. Though, the hippocampus – by it’s direct connections with other components of the limbic system – is involved with anxiety and most likely disrupts fluency by increasing anticipatory anxiety. While this hasn’t been proven scientifically with stuttering, it seems the most likely mechanism for the long lasting emotional component of stuttering. I hope this was helpful, Nathan