Abstract
We undertook a long-term recovery case study of a 46-year-old, right-handed male with severe motor aphasia, severe apraxia of speech, and severe oro-facial apraxia. He developed aphasia and right hemiplegia following a cerebral hemorrhage in the left hemisphere. CT images demonstrated a large lesion extending to the basal ganglia, and the frontal, temporal and parietal lobes of the left hemisphere. At 8 months after onset, we started examination of impairments of his language and speech, as well as related training. His impairments were examined using the Standard Language Test for Aphasia (SLTA) and assessment lists for apraxia of speech. The standard treatment for aphasia was initiated 8 months after the onset, in parallel with systematic articulation treatment. Upon initial testing, he could produce a few distorted vowels but no consonants. After a 4-year course of treatment, the results of SLTA showed conspicuous improvements in items related to speaking and writing. His speech improved from 5 to 3 in conversational discourse intelligibility rating. The variety of sounds that he can articulate voluntarily also expanded. Performance on the SLTA indicates recovery extends over a long period, with the course and time of recovery varying according to language and speech modalities.