More than one-third of all stroke patients suffer from aphasia. It is more prevalent than Parkinson’ s disease or Multiple Sclerosis, but is less widely known by the general population.
There are two main types of aphasia:
The first one is called non-fluent expressive aphasia. Also known as Broca’ s aphasia, which is named after Dr. Paul Brocas who discovered and later named the specific control center in the brain, Broca’ s area, in 1861. The Broca’ s area is located in the inferior frontal lobe of a person’ s dominant hemisphere( usually the left), which is the motor speech area. A person with Broca’ s aphasia knows what they want to say, yet has difficulty communicating through words, sign language, or in writing. This causes them to have long hesitations between words and make grammatical errors with wrong word substitutions( paraphasia). In spite of their own expression being severely impaired and their inability to use or understand language correctly, they actually tend to have good comprehension of what is being said to them. They usually have insight to their problem and, therefore, get very frustrated.
The second form of aphasia is called fluent receptive aphasia. Also known as Wernicke’ s aphasia, it is named after the neurologist, Dr. Carl Wernicke. Dr. Wernicke discovered Wernicke’ s area, which when impaired produces Wernicke’ s aphasia, 10 years after Broca’ s discovery. Wernicke’ s area is located in the posterior superior temporal lobe, which is the sensory area. When this area is affected, a person may be able to produce speech; but in addition to it being incorrect words, they actually don’ t realize it and are, therefore, unaware of the problem. Furthermore, they do not understand others people’ s words.
Besides brain trauma and stroke, there is also another cause for aphasia: dementia. The one type of aphasia not caused by brain trauma or stroke is called Primary Progressive aphasia( PPA). PPA is considered a form of dementia, in which language loss is the first symptom. The goal in treating PPA is to maintain language function for as long as possible before other symptoms of dementia eventually occur.
When aphasia is acquired from a brain trauma or stroke, language improvement might be achieved through speech therapy. PPA has no cure; treatment with speech therapy will only slow the disease’ s progression.
For almost 100 years, scientists believed that only Broca’ s area and Wernicke’ s area were contributors to aphasia. However, due to advancements in brain imaging, scientists have revealed a third region of the brain that is involved. This region is the inferior parietal lobule, also known as the Geschwind’ s territory. This area was named after the neurologist, Norman Geschwind, who discovered its importance in the 1960s. The Geschwind territory consists of angular gyrus and supramarginal gyrus( ridges or folds between two clefts on the cerebral surface in the brain) and is connected to the other two areas by large bundles of nerve fibers. Its function is to classify and label things, which is a prerequisite for forming concepts and thinking abstractly.
These three regions are found in the left hemisphere of the brain and make up what is known as the“ language loop.” They each have their own unique role. Broca’ s area is responsible for the expression of a person’ s communication to others. Wernicke’ s area is responsible for a person’ s understanding when others communicate to them. And the Geschwind’ s territory is the organized processor of information coming in and going out of the two areas.
For 90 percent of right-handed persons and 70 percent of left-handed persons, this language loop is found in the left hemisphere. This loop is also found at the same location in people with deafness. Damage to this loop explains why a person with severe hearing loss can have their communication affected by aphasia.
Although the language loop contains the most significant areas related to language, our other cranial hemisphere does contribute to language, enhancing the rhythm and intonation of our speech. For example, it has been found that brain areas controlling movement are connected to language. Functional MRI studies have shown that when we hear action words like“ run” or“ dance,” parts of the brain responsible for movement light up as if the body were actually running or dancing. These non-language areas sometimes assist people with aphasia in compensatory ways.
The light at the end of the tunnel is speech therapy. There are various modalities used, based on which part of the language loop is affected and its severity. Recovery can be a slow process for the individual with aphasia.
Some suggestions for communicating with people suffering from aphasia:
• Keep your language simple, emphasizing key words.
• Use visuals, gestures and technology to assist in comprehension.
• Limit distractions; background noise is a problem for most people with aphasia.
• Try to avoid open-ended questions; instead, structure your conversation to yes / no questions, either / or, and multiple-choice questions.
• Friends and family need to praise and encourage all attempts at speech by the affected person, and give them the time they need to find their words.
Remember that the intellects of those with aphasia have not been affected – only heir ability to express / comprehend words. And one piece of advice to those affected by aphasia: be prepared for situations in which you may need to communicate with others that may arise during your recovery process. Keep a paper handy with some basic pictures of expressions, needs and / or statements you can show people. This will aid you in communicating with others.
Take your speech therapy seriously. It does help. Studies have shown that the more intensely you work, the faster recovery occurs.
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InnovativeHealthMag. com