Transfer of language dominance

It has been suggested that recovery from aphasia may depend on the ability of the nondominant hemisphere to subserve language functions. We describe a patient who illustrates a possible "transfer" of language dominance. The patients sustained two infarcts two years apart, one in each hemisphere, involving mirror image territories in the temporoparietal area. The clinical course of each infarct was almost identical, consisting of an initial Wernicke's aphasia which evolved into anomic aphasia during recovery.