Psychiatry Investig.  2015 Oct;12(4):569-572. 10.4306/pi.2015.12.4.569.

A Selective Mutism Arising from First Language Attrition, Successfully Treated with Paroxetine-CBT Combination Treatment

• Serra A
• Di Mauro P
• Andaloro C
• Maiolino L
• Pavone P
• Cocuzza S

• KMID: 2391833
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4306/pi.2015.12.4.569

Abstract

After immersion in a foreign language, speakers often have difficulty retrieving native-language words and may experience a decrease in its proficiency, this phenomenon, in the non-pathological form, is known as first language attrition. Self-perception of this low native-language proficiency and apprehension occurring when speaking is expected and, may sometimes lead these people to a state of social anxiety and, in extreme forms, can involve the withholding of speech as a primitive tool for self-protection, linking them to selective mutism. We report an unusual case of selective mutism arising from first language attrition in an Italian girl after attending a two-year "German language school", who successfully responded to a paroxetine-cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT) combination treatment.

Keyword

Selective mutism; Cognitive behavioral therapy; Paroxetine; Anxiety; Language attrition

MeSH Terms

Anxiety
Cognitive Therapy
Female
Humans
Immersion
Mutism*
Paroxetine
Self Concept
Paroxetine