Tongue strength and alternate motion rates in normal and dysarthric subjects.

Tongue strength and alternate motion rates were measured in 50 normal subjects and in 18 subjects who had different neuropathologic types of dysarthria. The dysarthric subjects did not differ significantly from one another on any of the test measures. However, as a group they differed significantly from their normal counterparts in that they demonstrated weaker tongue strength, reduced and unsustained levels of maximum tongue strength effort, and slower alternate motion rates. Clinical implications are discussed.