Aphasia
Alexander R. Toftness in Incredible Consequences of Brain Injury, 2022
Aphasia is a disorder with many subtypes. There are subtypes of aphasia in which the afflicted person cannot speak but can still understand speech, types where they cannot understand speech but can still speak, and a severe type in which they can neither speak nor understand speech. The most disruptive subtype of aphasia, and probably the most common subtype, is called global aphasia . It is a nonfluent aphasia, with the most severe cases disrupting all language skills to the point that the person can only communicate using facial expressions and gestures. Aphasia generally results due to damage to the left side of the brain, especially to the temporal lobe. Global aphasia may become fluent aphasia as some fluency is recovered, and nonfluent aphasia may become a milder anomic aphasia.
Recognising and engaging with language problems
Ross Balchin, Rudi Coetzer, Christian Salas, Jan Webster in Addressing Brain Injury in Under-Resourced Settings, 2017
Language abilities are controlled primarily by various parts of the brain's left hemisphere - especially in right-handers. Those parts of the frontal lobe responsible for movement also control speech. This explains why patients who have problems speaking also usually have limb paralysis/weakness, as the motor part of the brain that controls these movements is near to the part that controls speech movements. Aphasia is the general term for language impairment. Given that different parts of the left hemisphere control different aspects of language, the type of problem that occurs depends on which area/s is injured. This is why there are various combinations of problems. Broca's aphasia results from damage to the front half of the left side of the brain - in the frontal regions next to the part of the brain that controls movement of the face. Patients with global aphasia cannot speak.
Introduction
Anne Whitworth, Janet Webster, David Howard in A Cognitive Neuropsychological Approach to Assessment and Intervention in Aphasia, 2014
This introduction presents an overview of key concept discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book aims to link theory and practice within a cognitive neuropsychological framework, presenting the theoretical literature and relating it directly to available assessment tools and reported therapy techniques. As service provision to people with aphasia often occurs within the context of healthcare systems, the terms 'person with aphasia' and 'client' are used interchangeably throughout the book. The book is divided into three discrete but interconnected sections. Part one sets out the cognitive neuropsychological approach used within the current management of people with aphasia, placing it within both an historical and contemporary framework. Part two provides a working explanation of the theoretical model, outlining the deficits that may arise from impairment to each stage of the model and discussing assessment for each stage. Part Three provides a selective review of the therapy literature, with detailed summaries of the therapy used.
Aphasia from the inside: The cognitive world of the aphasic patient
Published in Applied Neuropsychology: Adult, 2018
Alfredo Ardila, Silvia Rubio-Bruno
The purpose of this study was to analyze the question: how do people with aphasia experience the world? Three questions are approached: (1) how is behavior controlled in aphasia, considering that a normal linguistic control is no longer available; (2) what is the pattern of intellectual abilities in aphasia; and (3) what do aphasia patients’ self-report regarding the experience of living without language. In aphasia, behavior can no longer be controlled through the “second signal system” and only the first signal system remains. Available information suggests that sometimes no verbal abilities may be affected in aphasia. However, an important variability is observed: whereas, in some patients, evident nonverbal defects are found; in other patients, performance verbal abilities are within normal limits. Several self-reports of recovered aphasic patients explain the experience of living without language. Considering that language represents the major instrument of cognition, in aphasia, surrounding information is evidently interpreted in a partially different way and cognitive strategies are reorganized, resulting in an idiosyncratic cognitive world.
A computer-aided evaluation of error patterns in aphasic speech
Published in Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, 2010
Sharon Chan, Styliani Tsigka, Federico Boschetti, Rita Capasso
The objective of this research is to provide an improved automated computational tool to study aphasic production. Using the speech production of Italian aphasic patients, the present study demonstrates the possibility of applying an integrated algorithm to automatically assess and generate error patterns typical of aphasic speech. Philological studies and aphasia studies share one common point: errors (or variants) are informative, and the intention of the authors (in the case of philology) or of the patients (in the case of aphasiology) is to be established. For this precise reason, the present study adapts a tool, originally used in computational philology for the alignment of textual variants (), and puts it to use for assessing aphasic patient's speech error patterns. As is demonstrated, this tool is effective and analytical. The authors expect this to be beneficial for the use of analysing aphasic production in both clinical and academic settings.
Strategies Used by Communication Partners of Aphasic Speakers
Published in Activities, Adaptation & Aging, 2009
This article explores the experiences of communication partners of individuals with aphasia. The social model of aphasia intervention provided a useful framework when addressing the impact of the aphasic person's environment on the success of communication attempts. The communication partners perceived strategies such as maintaining a routine, using multiple communication modalities, and using targeted questions as helpful. Behaviors of the communication partners were considered just as important to establishing effective communication, including active listening, patience, and a genuine desire to perceive the message of the aphasic individual. Implications for practical applications and future research are outlined.
Related Knowledge Centers
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- Wernicke Aphasia
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