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Assessing Working Memory in Children: The Comprehensive Assessment Battery for Children – Working Memory (CABC-WM)
Published on: June 12, 2017
The relationship between working memory and apraxia of speech
Fernanda Chapchap Martins1, Karin Zazo Ortiz
1Department of Speech Pathology, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
Arquivos De Neuro-Psiquiatria
|October 20, 2009
Summary
Individuals with apraxia of speech exhibit working memory deficits, particularly impacting the phonarticulatory loop crucial for speech motor planning. This study highlights a significant link between impaired working memory and speech production challenges.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Speech-Language Pathology
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- Apraxia of speech (AOS) is a motor speech disorder affecting speech planning and programming.
- Working memory (WM) is essential for complex cognitive tasks, including speech production.
- The specific role of WM components in AOS remains incompletely understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between working memory capacity and apraxia of speech.
- To identify which specific working memory components are implicated in the speech motor planning deficits observed in AOS.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 22 patients diagnosed with AOS and 22 healthy adults were recruited.
- Patient selection included a single left-hemisphere brain lesion, confirmed AOS, and adequate oral comprehension.
- Both apraxia of speech severity and working memory capacity were systematically assessed.
Main Results:
- Patients with apraxia of speech demonstrated significantly poorer performance on working memory tasks compared to healthy controls.
- A statistically significant difference in working memory capacity was observed between the AOS group and the control group.
- All participants with AOS exhibited some degree of compromise in their working memory function.
Conclusions:
- Apraxia of speech is associated with a demonstrable deficit in working memory.
- This working memory impairment in AOS is likely linked to the articulatory processes within the phonarticulatory loop.
- Working memory dysfunction represents a core feature in individuals with apraxia of speech.
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