Active clinical trials for "Aphasia"

The purpose of the proposed research is to examine the effects of two treatment approaches on speech production involving speakers with chronic apraxia of speech (AOS) and aphasia. The planned investigation is designed to examine the acquisition, maintenance and generalization effects of each treatment. One approach, electropalatography (EPG) uses visual biofeedback in conjunction with articulatory-kinematic treatment and the other approach, sound production treatment (SPT) is one of the most systematically studied articulatory-kinematic treatments for AOS.

In order to determine if speech-language therapy has positive effect, reliable measurement tools are required to document outcomes. Currently, there is very limited information concerning the measurement of changes in speech production as a result of treatment for acquired apraxia of speech and aphasia. This study will obtain information concerning the reliability of several speech production measures over time. Thirty persons with chronic aphasia and apraxia of speech will be asked to provide speech samples in response to commonly used assessment tools on three sampling occasions so that the stability of measurements may be examined. After establishment of appropriate outcome measures, a small, pilot treatment study will be conducted with four participants. The participants will receive a new treatment for aphasia and acquired apraxia of speech and outcomes will be measured relative to speech and language production.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether a computerized speech-language treatment delivered by a virtual therapist (Oral Reading for Language in Aphasia (ORLA) + Writing) results in improved written communication skills of study participants with aphasia (i.e., difficulty with the comprehension and expression of spoken and written language).

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of Verb Network Strengthening Treatment (VNeST) on the ability to produce sentences and connected speech in persons with aphasia.

In this study the investigators are examining the effectiveness of intensive speech therapy in chronic moderate-to-severe stroke-induced aphasia under two conditions - responses "constrained" or unconstrained to speech. Both treatments involve massed practice communicating, using intensive language action therapy 3 hours/day, 5 days/week for two weeks, followed by six months of a home practice program. One treatment stresses spoken responses as the preferred expressive modality during intensive therapy. Before and after treatment, and following the home practice program and a period of no practice, the investigators will administer several tests and discourse samples to examine changes associated with the treatments. Participants will also undergo structural and functional MRI testing at these time points. The investigators will also attempt to quantify the degree to which improvements following intensive language therapy and home practice correlate with changes in Quality of Life measures as perceived by both participants with aphasia and their significant others. It is hypothesized that, whereas both treatments will lead to improvements in naming practiced words and communicating, outcomes will be enhanced for the group randomly assigned to the "constraint" condition. Moreover, performance will be enhanced on words practiced during the home practice program, including those that were not practiced during intensive therapy. Improved naming will correlate with modulation of 'signature' language and attentional networks, whose variability will depend on remaining viable brain structures. Initial severity and site/extent of lesion should predict patients' ability to transfer gains in naming to improvements in discourse.

A growing neurorehabilitation literature suggests that intense treatment may be desired to maximize the effects of therapy following neurologic injury. This investigation is designed to facilitate the development of efficacious, clinically applicable treatment for acquired apraxia of speech by examining the effects of intensity of treatment (e.g., 9 hours per week vs. 3 hours per week, while holding total number of sessions constant) with a group of speakers who have chronic apraxia of speech and aphasia.

This study tests whether weak electrical stimulation of the brain is effective in improving language or reading difficulties occurring after a brain injury or stroke.

In this study the investigators will examine the efficacy of navigated excitatory repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (nerTMS) for the treatment of post stroke aphasia. The investigators expect that this new types of rehabilitation (nerTMS) will help patients with aphasia return to their lives as they were prior to the stroke.

The aim of this work is to study the effect of transcranial direct current stimulation combined with naming therapy in acute and post-acute stroke comparing four bihemispheric positioning electrodes to a sham condition.

Central alexia is a common reading disorder caused by stroke. Patients with central alexia (CA) are slow to read and make frequent errors, and have additional problems with their spoken language. This study has 3 aims: Investigating the neural networks that support reading in patients with CA Despite being a relatively common syndrome, there have been no functional brain imaging studies of CA. This project will use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) to understand which brain regions are damaged and whether preserved parts of the reading network can be encouraged by therapy to support reading recovery. Testing a new treatment for CA The research team has developed training software called 'iReadMore', which uses a crossmodal approach (written words paired with spoken words) to train reading. This therapy has been shown to be effective in patients with a similar form of reading disorder called pure alexia. The iReadMore software will be adapted to address the reading deficit in CA, and the research will test whether it significantly improves reading ability. Using brain stimulation to enhance behavioural training Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a brain stimulation technique that has been shown to improve language performance in healthy controls and stroke patients. This study will test whether tDCS (delivered simultaneously with the 'iReadMore' therapy) significantly enhances reading rehabilitation. Patients will be split into two groups: one will receive a 4 week block of training plus real tDCS first, followed by a 4 week block of training plus sham tDCS; the other group will receive the two therapy blocks in the opposite order. Both groups will ultimately receive the same amount of behavioural therapy and tDCS stimulation. Comparing the reading improvement over the real and sham tDCS blocks will demonstrate whether tDCS enhances the behavioural improvements in reading ability. Hypothesis: iReadMore reading therapy will significantly improve single word reading speed in patients with central alexia. tDCS brain stimulation will significantly enhance the effect of iReadMore therapy, compared to sham stimulation.