Patient's question:
Dear Director,My baby is a boy, 1 year and 9 months old. He started speaking early; he could say many words at 1 year and 5 months and was quite fluent. However, recently, he has suddenly started stuttering severely. He struggles to get the first word out, sometimes holding his breath for half a second before saying it, and if he can’t say it, he just stops. This has never happened before. His grandfather has a stutter, so could this be hereditary? We are all very worried. The baby is frustrated because he can’t express himself, and it’s extremely painful for us to see him like this.
Doctor's answer:
Hello, stuttering is a speech disorder, commonly known as stammering, which may be related to genetic or brain dysfunction, or may be caused by psychological factors. If children suffer from brain infections, head injuries, or infectious diseases such as whooping cough, measles, influenza, or scarlet fever, it may also lead to stuttering. This is generally corrected through treatment or psychological therapy.