Therapy dose, recovery phase, and patient factors influencing language outcomes in post-stroke aphasia

Therapy dose is increasingly recognized as an important factor influencing language recovery in post-stroke aphasia, yet evidence from routine clinical practice remains limited.

To examine the relationship between total therapy dose and language outcomes, and to explore the influence of sex, recovery phase, and aphasia type.

A longitudinal pre-post study was conducted with 20 adults with aphasia who received eight weeks of individualized speech-language therapy in three rehabilitation centers in Spain. Language performance was assessed with the Spanish version of the Mississippi Aphasia Screening Test (MASTsp). Statistical analyses included Wilcoxon tests, Spearman correlations, regression models, and non-parametric comparisons.

Participants showed significant improvement after intervention (p = 0.003). Therapy dose correlated positively with language gains (r = 0.624, p = 0.003), and receiving ≥ 20 h predicted greater improvement (p = 0.019). Sex and aphasia type did not significantly influence outcomes. Recovery phase showed a significant effect, with individuals in the acute and subacute stages improving more than those in the chronic phase (p = 0.046).

A minimum of 20 therapy hours over eight weeks appears beneficial for language recovery in post-stroke aphasia. Recovery phase emerged as a relevant factor, while sex and aphasia type showed no measurable impact. These findings contribute practice-based evidence supporting the role of therapy dose in aphasia rehabilitation.