Aphasia

BAI:

aphasia

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder caused by damage to the brain’s language centers, typically in the left hemisphere. It impairs the ability to speak, understand speech, read, and write, but does not affect intelligence.

The condition is primarily caused by stroke (affecting ~1/3 of survivors), traumatic brain injury, brain tumors, or neurodegenerative diseases like dementia. Symptoms vary based on the damage location and include:

Expressive (Broca’s) Aphasia: Difficulty producing speech or finding words, often with short, effortful sentences.

Receptive (Wernicke’s) Aphasia: Difficulty understanding language, often resulting in fluent but nonsensical speech.

Global Aphasia: Severe impairment in both production and comprehension of language.

Anomic Aphasia: Specific trouble recalling words or names.

Treatment typically involves speech-language therapy to relearn language skills and develop alternative communication methods, such as gestures or assistive technology.