Development and Validation of Language and Communication Assessment Scales
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: conversational approach.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Language Disorders, Aphasia. Basic parameters: 18 years — 90 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Italy
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Overview
The aim of speech therapy for people with aphasia is to improve their ability to communicate in daily life. Traditional evaluations focus on linguistic tasks, but they do not fully address everyday communication skills, which are crucial for creating personalized treatment goals. The study suggests a multimodal approach to language assessment, stressing the importance of gestures in communication. It calls for the development of tools that evaluate communication in a wider context, including factors like motivation, attention, awareness, and alternative communication strategies. Additionally, there is a need for tools specifically designed to assess communicative gestures.
Detailed description
The goal of speech therapy for individuals with aphasia is to improve their communication effectiveness, enabling them to communicate in daily life. Traditional aphasia assessments focus on linguistic processes (e.g., naming, comprehension, dictation), which are categorized under impairment in the ICF framework, while everyday communication skills fall under activity and participation. However, there is a lack of consensus and appropriate tools for assessing everyday communication in aphasic patients, which are crucial for setting personalized treatment goals. The study suggests an interactive, multimodal model of language assessment, emphasizing the role of gestures in communication. It calls for the development of scales and tests that assess communication in a broader context, including factors like motivation, attention, awareness, and alternative communication strategies, as well as questionnaires evaluating both the individual's and caregiver's perceptions of communicative effectiveness and daily life participation. Moreover, an assessment tool of communicative gestures is needed.
Interventions
- Behavioral conversational approach
The conversational approach in speech-language rehabilitation focuses on improving communication within real-life, functional contexts. It emphasizes natural, interactive communication, helping individuals engage in meaningful conversations and participate in daily activities. Therapy often involves practicing communication in real-life scenarios, incorporating verbal and non-verbal cues. The goal is to enhance confidence and effectiveness in communication, allowing individuals with speech or la
Primary outcome measures
- Communicative efficacy [Time frame: 36 months]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
Patient admitted to the hospital for an intensive neurorehabilitation cycle or attending as an outpatient Diagnosis of language and communication disorders following a stroke in the right or left hemisphere Age > 18 years Ability to provide informed consent Native speaker of Italian (L1 Italian)
Exclusion criteria
- Unstable clinical conditions that may interfere with participation in the study (e.g., active symptomatic infections, stupor, need for oxygen therapy)
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Observational model
- Cohort
Study locations
Italy · 1 center
- IRCCS San Camillo — Venice
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07518576 · 2022.02