Dose-Controlled Script Training for Aphasia: A Quasi-Randomized Pilot Clinical Trial Examining Treatment Frequency

Area of Science:

• Neurology
• Speech-Language Pathology

Background:

• Optimal scheduling for aphasia treatment remains unclear, with competing theories favoring intensive (massed) or distributed (spaced) schedules.
• Previous research has primarily focused on single-word retrieval, neglecting connected language treatments with greater generalization potential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare outcomes of a script-training treatment for chronic poststroke aphasia across three session frequency conditions.
• To investigate whether session frequency influences treatment effectiveness in terms of accuracy, speech rate, and generalization.

Main Methods:

• A quasi-randomized pilot clinical trial involving 45 adults with chronic poststroke aphasia.
• Six 1-hour sessions of computer-based script training delivered via AphasiaScripts software.
• Three conditions: standard (2 sessions/week), intensive (3 sessions/week), and attenuating (varied frequency over 3 weeks).

Main Results:

• All treatment conditions demonstrated statistically reliable positive effects from baseline to posttreatment and follow-up.
• No significant differences in accuracy or speech rate were observed between the different session frequency conditions.
• Generalization effects were not significant immediately posttreatment but became positive at 4-week follow-up.

Conclusions:

• The frequency of script-training sessions (standard, intensive, or attenuating) did not affect treatment outcomes for accuracy, rate, or generalization.
• All tested schedules of aphasia script-training therapy yielded positive and reliable treatment effects.
• Findings suggest flexibility in scheduling aphasia treatment without compromising efficacy.