Amnestic aphasia is a disease that a person of absolutely any age and material we alth can face. No one can be immune from this pathology. That is why every person should know that this is amnestic aphasia and how to properly treat it.
Small introduction
Speech is one of the fundamental types of cognitive work of the human brain. In terms of the amount of perceived information, it ranks second after the visual neurosensory apparatus and controls communicative activity. Not surprisingly, without speech, communication becomes less productive and informative. The defect of speech function, which appeared when the patient had the ability to speak, is called aphasia and is an acute social problem.
There are many serious neurological pathologies that can lead to the development of this disease and other abnormalities.
Features of the disease
Amnesic aphasia is one of the common consequences of ischemic attacks and strokes. This pathology occurs due to organic damage to the area of the cortexhemispheres that control language. In addition to amnestic, there are several other types of aphasia. Each of them is characterized by its own signs of a speech disorder.
Any kind of aphasia entails a significant decrease in the quality of life of a sick person, since his communication with other people is very difficult. But despite the complexity of the disease, it is still amenable to correction with proper therapy and rehabilitation. Gradually, the victim can adapt and lead a normal life.
Summary of amnestic aphasia
First of all, it is worth noting that this pathology always has an acquired character. In other words, it is noted in those who initially had a normal speech function. That is why it is so important not to confuse this pathology with alalia if the defect is diagnosed in childhood.
Amnestic aphasia is a disease in which a person is not able to pronounce the names of different animals, phenomena or objects. Such a deviation is accompanied by a huge number of verbs with a shortage of nouns in speech. A person suffering from this type of aphasia simply cannot name objects correctly - instead, he describes them in other words, mainly verbs.
For the correct diagnosis of pathology, doctors use a special Luria table. It presents all existing varieties of aphasia. This is a very important diagnostic step.for it is first necessary to distinguish the amnestic form from the other forms of the disease.
Classification
So, there are several types of aphasia. It is necessary to know them first of all for correct diagnosis:
- Efferent motor type. This defect appears against the background of damage to the human motor speech system. The main symptoms include: obvious grammatical errors not only in writing, but also in speech, complex incomprehensible expressions, difficult transitions from units to plurals.
- Dynamic variation. Such a disease covers the cerebral cortex. It is extremely difficult for a person suffering from this vice to logically build a chain in his monologue.
- Afferent motor view. This violation occurs due to damage to the back of the head or parietal zone. With this type of aphasia, it is very difficult for the patient to pronounce certain sounds. In addition, the victim may have some problems with gesticulation.
- Sensory variety. This pathology appears after phonemic damage. In this case, the patient is faced with problems in the perception of sound information. In other words, a person hears the words, but simply cannot understand what they want from him.
- Acoustic-mnestic type. It is noted when the connection between the memory center and the auditory analyzer is damaged. This pathology is characterized by poor speech with an excess of parasitic words.
- Optico-mnestic view. Such people are faced with the problem of visual perception of the phenomenon and its name. At the same time, a person is able to describe the object itself, but his speech is too fluent and slurred. It is often extremely difficult for the patient to find the right words.
- Semantic variety. This type is characterized by discord in the process of pronunciation of words and simultaneous analysis. The disease is expressed in the inability to normally perceive speech by ear.
- Amnestic look. This defect is observed with violations in the parietal-temporal region. At the same time, the patient is completely unable to call a spade a spade.
In fact, the classification of aphasia is conditional. In different forms and stages, lesions of identical areas of the brain can be noted. That is why self-medication in such a situation will not work - you need to seek help from a specialist who will help correct speech.
Symptoms
Most often, amnestic aphasia is rather sluggish, so its symptoms can be mild and invisible. It is often possible to identify pathology only with prolonged communication with the patient. The main symptoms of the disease include the following violations:
- the patient cannot always remember the names of objects, but at the same time is able to describe them in detail;
- speech itself can be characterized by too long pauses or, conversely, by rapid, completely slurred pronunciation;
- very often the same expressions are repeated in a person's monologue;
- Nouns are regularly skipped during speech;
- frequent use of paraphrasing;
- in general,the conversation is building correctly;
- there is no even partial loss of the possibility of visual perception;
- gesture remains fairly clear and correct;
- no problems with pronunciation of sounds and sentences.
For accurate diagnosis and therapy, it is necessary to identify the initial cause of the development of the disease.
Pathogenesis
The specific location of the brain injury is a clue to identify amnestic aphasia. The localization of the lesion in this type of disease is the junction zone of the occipital, parietal or temporal parts of the brain. It is noteworthy that the pathology does not appear on the affected area, but on the opposite side. Right-handed people suffer from the left hemisphere, while left-handed people suffer from the right. These areas act as a kind of hard disk, and if they are damaged, the victim develops speech defects.
Preconditions for emergence
The most common causes of amnestic aphasia are:
- Tranio-cerebral injury with brain damage of varying degrees - sometimes victims experience short-term memory loss, and in some cases irreversible white matter damage is likely, against which a person needs to re-fill his brain with memories and knowledge.
- Peak's and Alzheimer's diseases can provoke memory deterioration and, as a result, the appearance of speech defects. In the absence of therapydiseases will actively progress, increasing the area of the affected brain.
- Infectious malformations such as meningitis or encephalitis.
- Poisoning the body with dangerous chemicals and poisons leads to confusion and, accordingly, aphasia.
- Malignant tumors.
- Impaired blood flow.
- Acute abnormalities in cerebral blood flow leading to strokes and other problems.
- Various inflammatory processes, such as brain abscess.
- Some psychological disorders.
Risk groups
Categories of increased likelihood of developing amnestic aphasia include several segments of the population:
- older people;
- those with a family history of similar problems;
- patients suffering from some common pathologies, such as hypertension, frequent migraine attacks, coronary disease, epilepsy.
Various factors can lead to the appearance of a problem, but the ultimate cause under any circumstances is the death of nervous tissue. Early diagnosis is deservedly considered the key to successful therapy. To identify the problem in a timely manner, you should visit doctors as often as possible and undergo appropriate examinations.
Diagnosis
Before starting therapy, it is necessary to know the degree of brain damage and the severity of the problem. For this, experts recommend conducting several examinations:
- Ultrasound and sonography;
- X-ray of the skull and brain to detect defects;
- CT;
- comprehensive laboratory tests;
- Doppler vascular mapping;
- plain and contrast MRI of the brain.
How much does such a diagnosis cost? X-ray will cost the patient about 1800-2400 rubles. The cost of a CT session reaches approximately 2800 rubles. Laboratory tests at the clinic can be done free of charge. But the most expensive examination is tomography. How much does a brain MRI cost? In the capital's clinics, the cost of this study without contrast agents ranges from 4-5 thousand rubles. But contrast tomography can cost 6000-7000 rubles.
The results of the assigned examinations will help determine the localization of damage and prescribe appropriate therapy.
Treatment
Amnesic aphasia is far from correctable in all cases. Doctors prescribe a therapeutic regimen only on the basis of the results of examinations. In some cases, the patient needs emergency surgery. Such an operation is prescribed only in case of an immediate threat to the life of the victim.
For a quick recovery, a person needs complex treatment, which consists of several stages:
- psychological therapy;
- taking drugs;
- exercising.
Amnesic aphasia can be easily corrected if all the doctor's instructions are followed. Young people recover the fastest. Often there were situations when a strong youngthe body coped with the problem even without the participation of medicines thanks to good immunity.
On average, patients recover from aphasia for quite a long time. This process usually takes about 5 years. But even with proper treatment, one cannot be sure of the onset of recovery.
Recovery
Rehabilitation after amnestic aphasia should take place in stages. In no case should you load a person with too much exercise. The ability to talk normally should return to the victim gradually.
The whole recovery process can be conditionally divided into several parts:
- First, the patient is shown images of various objects. Each photo must be accompanied by a caption. During training, each picture is described in detail to a person.
- Then comes the turn of situational speech development. A person should participate as actively as possible in conversations on various topics.
- Then comes the restoration and filling of the memory. A person at this stage of rehabilitation needs to read books, watch all kinds of films and solve crossword puzzles.
