Aphasia Categories

Aphasia is a communication disorder that affects many adults and families. Aphasia occurs as a result of damage to the language-specific areas of the brain (ASHA, 2014). Individuals with aphasia may experience difficulties with oral language, receptive language, memory, attention writing, and reading. There are a myriad of approaches designed for the treatment of aphasia. Two treatment approaches, Promoting Aphasics Communicative Effectiveness (P.A.C.E.) and Constraint Induced Language Therapy (C.I.L.T.), and their efficacy in regard to available evidence will be discussed below.

Language is an ability that many of us take for granted in everyday life. For those with aphasia, it is a daily struggle to overcome and effective communication is a goal to strive for. Aphasia patients are able to think, perhaps as well as the average person, but they simply cannot convey their ideas or thoughts easily. The Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination is an excellent examination for the diagnosis of the presence and type of aphasia, and for the location of brain damage. The Minnesota Test for Differential Diagnosis of Aphasia has been shown to be the most comprehensive assessment of the overall patient’s strengths and weaknesses in regard to language; it also allows for physicians to predict recovery accurately. Though it is no longer as popular or applicable as newer diagnostic tests, such as the BDAE, it is still an accurate assessment for aphasia. I think this is the paradox in neurological assessment: as technological advances improve, older assessments are becoming invalidated- though they are not inaccurate assessments. New advances and knowledge are being acquired in medicine every day, therefore there is always room for improvement (Holland, 2008). One of the biggest cons to the two batteries I mentioned in this paper is the fact that they are both time consuming- for both the patient and the

Outcomes of taught target sounds can generalize to other sounds and contexts if the clinician provides the client with adequate training and opportunities, compared to assuming that acquisition in one setting will automatically generalize (McReynolds, 1989). Clinicians must plan for generalization before the start of treatment (Kearns, 1989). Factors for generalization can include: treatment approach and target phonemes. In order for the client to generalize the treatment, therefore showing true success, the client needs an effective treatment approach. Although not one

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder that affects a person’s ability to understand oral and written language, speaking and writing. It is estimated that one third of those who survive stroke have aphasia (Department of Health, 2007). Most patients with aphasia exhibit spontaneous recovery, usually in the first 2-3 months following stroke onset (Godecke, Hird, Lalor, Rai, & Phillips, 2012). However, 30-40% of these patients may experience long-term post-stroke aphasia (Bakheit et al., 2007). Continued rehabilitative treatments with the speech and language pathologists (SLPs) are not as significantly effective due to the current high demands on limited resources (Palmer et al., 2012), which reduced the availability of face-to-face speech

Standardization of the revised Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination is based on a normative sample of 242 patients with aphasic symptoms tested at the Boston, VA. Medical Center between1976-1982.

The effects of two treatments for word retrieval impairments in aphasic individuals. With the use of errorless naming treatment (ENT) and gestural facilitation of naming (GES). The effects of the two treatments that were used for a daily picture naming/gesture production probe measure and in standardized aphasia tests and communication rating scales were administered across phases of treatment. (p.235)

Expressive aphasia, also known as Broca’s aphasia, impairs the way in which a person’s language is produced. Although this type of aphasia impairs a person’s ability to speak, they are still able to use the other aspects of language, such as comprehending when someone is speaking to them. Broca’s aphasia may cause long pauses between words, this is called dysprosody, and leaving out important words or endings of words, which is known as agrammatism. This type of aphasia occurs when there is traumatic damage to what is referred to as the Broca’s area of the brain. Treatment of Broca’s aphasia is done by a Speech Language Pathologist, and is different for each person depending on their specific needs. Receptive aphasia, known as Wernicke’s aphasia, impairs one’s ability to understand themselves and others. The way that they speak is barely comprehensible; this is known as logorrhea. Patients with Wernicke’s aphasia may have something called anosagnosia, which makes them believe that what they are saying is being understood. This type of aphasia makes it very difficult for SLP’s to treat because of the anosognosia. Wernicke’s aphasia is caused by damage to what is known as the Wernicke’s area of the

Aphasia on the other hand is a communication disorder where the person struggles to understand words and speech. Patients on an aphasia ward were caught laughing at the presidents’ speech confusing staff. This is because despite not understanding words or meanings, tone is preserved and even often enhanced in aphasiacs. (Henry Head, 1926, cited in Sacks, 1998, p.86).

This is when the sufferer cannot find the correct word for what they intend. Often aphasia does not develop until the sufferer has reached the second stage of the disease (estimated to be last between 4 and 10 years after the first symptoms) (Devinsky & D'Esposito, 2004). Alzheimer’s disease is not the only cause for aphasia, and it affects patients in different severity levels. Aphasia is clear to recognise as you can detect it by simply conversing with the patient, however differentiating between it being caused by Alzheimer’s disease or another condition (e.g. semantic dementia) can prove more difficult. A study was carried out (Libon et al., 2013) where 57 patients with Alzheimer’s disease, 15 with semantic variant of primary progressive aphasia (PPA) and 35 healthy seniors (used as the control group). They were asked to carry out a number of tasks such as categorizing words. They were shown a basic word on a card (e.g. ‘tree’), and then the experimenter would say a category (e.g. ‘nature’). The participant was required to reply ‘yes’ or ‘no’ depending on if the word related to the category. The task was repeated using picture images of the words instead, so the participant would be shown the image of a tree instead for example. Both the experimental groups (the Alzheimer’s patients and the semantic variant PPA patients) showed a significant deficiency in word processing from the task. MRI

Standardized and nonstandardized methods are used to screen oral motor functions, speech production skills, comprehension, written language, and cognitive aspects of communication. Screenings typically focus on body structures and functions, (ASHA, 2016). Strengths and weaknesses related to spoken and written language are determined along with noticing how the effects of the language disorder impact the individual’s activities and participation in everyday context (e.g., social interactions, work activities). This is important for the person with aphasia’s quality of life which is targeted in the treatment. The individual’s areas

Mesulum (2003) defined primary progressive aphasia as a clinical disorder with gradual onset and progressive dissolution in an individuals' language skills which could be attributed to the degeneration of the frontotemporal region of the brain. According to the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association, (2015) Primary Progressive Apahsia is described as focal dementia which characterized by gradual loss of language function with relatively well unaffected memory skills, and visual processing skills until the later stages

These facts give momentum to the importance of the roles and responsibilities for Speech Language Pathologists when counseling patients, and the caregivers of people who have Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s disease directly attacks areas of the brain that effect cognitive abilities and memory, these skills are essential for an individuals comprehension and the production of language – this acquired language disorder is called Aphasia and it is within the speech language pathologists scope of practice to provide counseling to those that are diagnosed, and their caregivers.

Aphasia can cause problems with speaking, listening, reading, writing, understanding speech, and thinking of words when speaking or writing. The exact symptoms involved with a particular patient depends on the type and severity of the injury to the brain. It affects about 20 percent of stroke patients.

A third type of aphasia, global aphasia, results from damage to extensive portions of the language areas of the brain. “Individuals with global aphasia have severe communication difficulties and may be extremely limited in their ability to speak or comprehend language”. ()

Nearly one million individuals within the United States experience aphasia resulting from a storke. According to the American Heart Association, strokes are the third leading cause of death in the United States. They are often referred to as a cerebrovascular accident (CVA). This occurs when the blood flow to the brain has been either stopped or interrupted. The deprivation of blood flow and oxygen to the brain results in a stroke. Around 41.2 percent of individuals who suffered from a stroke will have aphasia (Guyomard et al., 2009). Aphasia is a deficit in language abilities resulting from the brain (Manasco,2014). Aphasia is broken down into, two categories fluent and non-fluent. Individuals with aphasia typically suffer from anomia.