Descriptive study of 192 adults with speech and language disturbances

Aphasia is a very disabling condition caused by neurological diseases. In Brazil, we have little data on the profile of aphasics treated in rehabilitation centers.

To present a descriptive study of 192 patients, providing a reference sample of speech and language disturbances among Brazilians.

Retrospective study.

Speech Pathology Unit linked to the Neurology Division of the Hospital das Clínicas of the Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo.

All patients (192) referred to our Speech Pathology service from 1995 to 2000.

We collected data relating to demographic variables, etiology, language evaluation (functional evaluation, Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination, Boston Naming and Token Test), and neuroimaging studies.

The results obtained in language tests and the clinical and neuroimaging data were organized and classified. Seventy aphasics were chosen for constructing a profile. Fourteen subjects with left single-lobe dysfunction were analyzed in detail. Seventeen aphasics were compared with 17 normal subjects, all performing the Token Test.

One hundred subjects (52%) were men and 92 (48%) women. Their education varied from 0 to 16 years (average: 6.5; standard deviation: 4.53). We identified the lesion sites in 104 patients: 89% in the left hemisphere and 58% due to stroke. The incidence of aphasia was 70%; dysarthria and apraxia, 6%; functional alterations in communication, 17%; and 7% were normal. Statistically significant differences appeared when comparing the subgroup to controls in the Token Test.

We believe that this sample contributes to a better understanding of neurological patients with speech and language disturbances and may be useful as a reference for health professionals involved in the rehabilitation of such disorders.