In this ASHA Reader, we’ll explore a variety of research on the assessment and treatment of individuals with acquired neurologic communication disorders that was presented at the 43rd Clinical Aphasiology Conference. Research and technical papers walk through studies of the effectiveness of various treatment approaches for aphasia generally, or for particular disorders under the aphasia umbrella, including a residential intensive comprehensive aphasia program, Verb Network Strengthening Treatment (VNeST) for aphasia, Sound Production Treatment for apraxia of speech, phonomotor treatment for individuals with phonological alexia, and intensive therapy sessions for people with anomia.

Other research described in the self-study includes measuring effort invested in working memory tasks using heart rate variability and the correlation between cognitive measures, such as narrative discourse ability, and brain volume loss following traumatic brain injury. The papers presented here give practitioners an encyclopedic sense of the breadth and depth of the research currently being done on assessment and treatment of aphasia.

View a sample article: Description of an Intensive Residential Aphasia Treatment Program: Rationale,Clinical Processes, and Outcomes.

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association is pleased to partner with CAC to disseminate these valuable scholarly contributions in order to help advance the evidence-base of the discipline.