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Oral reading for language in aphasia (ORLA): evaluating the efficacy of computer-delivered therapy in chronic
1Center for Aphasia Research and Treatment, Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
Purpose:
This study examined the efficacy of a treatment, Oral Reading for Language in Aphasia (ORLA), delivered by computer to individuals with chronic nonfluent aphasia and compared its efficacy with the same treatment delivered by a speech-language pathologist (SLP).
Method:
With ORLA, the person with aphasia systematically and repeatedly reads aloud sentences, first in unison and then independently. Following a no-treatment period, 25 individuals with chronic nonfluent aphasia were randomly assigned to receive 24 sessions of ORLA, 1-3 times per week, either by computer or by the SLP.
Results:
For participants receiving computer ORLA, change made on the Western Aphasia Battery Aphasia Quotient (WAB-AQ) during the treatment phase was larger than the change made during the no-treatment phase. Positive effect sizes for change during treatment compared with change during the no-treatment phase were obtained and were benchmarked as medium or large for the WAB-AQ and discourse measures. There was no significant difference between outcomes for computer ORLA compared with SLP-ORLA.
Conclusion:
Low-intensity ORLA, delivered by computer to individuals with chronic nonfluent aphasia, is efficacious and may be equivalent to ORLA delivered by an SLP.
