Central language disorders

Question 1

Define aphasia

Answer 1

• Communication disorders caused by brain damage such as CVA (cerebrovascular accident aka stroke) or meningitis, car accident
• Characterised by complete or incomplete impairment of language

Question 2

Define Broca’s aphasia

Answer 2

• Broca’s area in frontal lobe
• Most common type of aphasia
• Non-fluent
• Issues with output, processing intact
• Aware of their limitations; frustrating
• Acquired

Question 3

Broca’s aphasia:

Communicative characteristics

Answer 3

• Non-fluent
• Agrammatic speech
• Content words present
• Short, often telegraphic utterances
• Utterances stored as ‘chunks’
• Tip of the tongue
• Word finding difficulties

Question 4

Broca’s and Wernicke’s aphasia:

Treatment, impact and theoretical issues

Answer 4

• Speech therapy programmes (most change in first 6 months)
• Upsetting for families, difficult to communicate, frustrations
• Highlights presence of language in left hemisphere and where processing occurs (Broca’s area?)
• Highlights presence of language in left hemisphere and where output occurs (Wernicke’s area?)
• Support groups for Broca’s to improve confidence

Question 5

Define Wernicke’s aphasia

Answer 5

• Wernicke’s area in temporal lobe
• Fluent
• Issues with comprehension and processing, output is confident
• Unaware of condition
• Uncommon

Question 6

Wernicke’s aphasia:

Communicative characteristics

Answer 6

• Confident, definite intonation
• Rambling communicative style
• Pragmatic breakdown (interruption and quick speech)
• Difficult for participants
• Severe auditory comprehension

Question 7

Define cirumlocutions

Answer 7

The use of a phrase with multiple words that could be communicated with fewer apter words