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Intensive therapy

People with aphasia less than one month post onset could have access to intensive aphasia rehabilitation if they can tolerate it.

Reference: Godecke et al., 2014; Godecke, Hird, Lalor, Rai, & Phillips, 2012

NHMRC level of Evidence: II

Rationale: Research has shown that people with mild to severe aphasia who can interact for up to 30 minutes at day-14 post stroke benefit from daily aphasia therapy when it is provided at 45-60 minutes per day for 20 sessions. The total amount of therapy equates to between 15-20 hours of therapy within the first 4-5 weeks post-stroke.
After controlling for initial aphasia and stroke severity, people with aphasia who received the above therapy regimen achieved 18% greater recovery than those who received standard care on the Aphasia Quotient score of the Western Aphasia Battery at therapy completion. This therapeutic benefit was maintained at six months post-stroke, indicating a significant improvement in communication recovery over and above what is expected of spontaneous recovery and usual ward-based aphasia therapy. (Godecke et al., 2014; Godecke, Hird, Lalor, Rai, & Phillips, 2012).

References:

  1. Godecke, E., Ciccone, N. A., Granger, A. S., Rai, T., West, D., Cream, A., . . . Hankey, G. J. (2014). A comparison of aphasia therapy outcomes before and after a Very Early Rehabilitation programme following stroke. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 49(2). doi: 10.1111/1460-6984.12074
  2. Godecke, E., Hird, K., Lalor, E. E., Rai, T., & Phillips, M. R. (2012). Very early poststroke aphasia therapy: a pilot randomized controlled efficacy trial. International journal of stroke : official journal of the International Stroke Society, 7(8). doi: 10.1111/j.1747-4949.2011.00631.x

 

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l.worrall@uq.edu.au

+61 7 3365 2891

Professor Linda Worrall
The University of Queensland
ST LUCIA QLD 4072   

 

RESEARCH PARTNERS


NHMRC
The University of Queensland
La Trobe University
Macquarie University
The University of Newcastle
The University of Sydney
Edith Cowan University