Below is an abstract of a paper that seems relevant to this discussion. I do not have access to the original paper but this abstract of a study of a small number of participants suggests a possible link between vestibular stimulation and motor speech parameters. The abstract suggests that the design of the study was not particularly strong, but it would be useful to look at the actual paper to learn more about the putative mechanism for such a link.
Kind regards, Suzanne
Engberg, A.
Department of Neurology, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Vestibular stimulation after head injury: effect on reaction times and motor speech parameters.
<http://ovidsp.tx.ovid.com.ezproxy.auckland.ac.nz/sp-3.2/ovidweb.cgi?&S=KHFCFPMLMBDDGKEDNCDLIADCEBNJAA00&Complete+Reference=S.sh.35%7c4%7c1>
Comment in: Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1990 May;71(6):441; PMID: 2334294]
Archives of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation. 70(13):893-901, 1989 Dec.
Earlier studies by other authors indicate that vestibular stimulation may improve attention and dysarthria in head injured patients. In the present study of five severely head injured patients and five controls, the effect of vestibular stimulation on reaction times (reflecting attention) and some motor speech parameters (reflecting dysarthria) was investigated. After eight weeks with regular stimulation, it was concluded that reaction time changes were individual and consistent for a given subject. Only occasionally were they shortened after stimulation. However, reaction time was lengthened in three cases, prohibiting further stimulation in one case. Motion sickness was prohibitive in a second case. However, after-stimulation increase of phonation time and/or vital capacity was found in one patient and four controls. Oral diadochokinetic rates were slowed in several cases. Collectively, when stimulation induced changes of reaction times or motor speech parameters, the changes were more pronounced in patients than in controls.
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