The Benefits of Conversation Group Treatment for Individuals With Chronic Aphasia: Updated Evidence From a Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial on Measures of Language and Communication.
IF 2.3 3区 医学Q1 AUDIOLOGY & SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY
Elizabeth Hoover, Gretchen Szabo, Francine Kohen, Sarah Vitale, Nicholas McCloskey, Edwin Maas, Varsha Kulkarni, Gayle DeDe
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Purpose: Aphasia is a communication disorder that affects up to 30% of stroke survivors. Insufficient access to communication services creates personal, social, and financial costs to people with aphasia (PwA), care partners, and the community. Group conversation treatment has the potential to improve communication and reduce social isolation in a cost-effective manner, but little is known about its critical ingredients. This multicenter randomized controlled trial examined the effects of conversation treatment and whether the pattern of changes on outcome measures differed when treatment was delivered in large groups compared to dyads.
Method: One hundred four PwA were randomly assigned to a dyad, large group, or delayed control condition. Conversation group treatment was 1 hr, twice weekly, over 10 weeks. Individual communication goals were addressed within thematically oriented conversation treatment. To evaluate treatment effects, primary (Aphasia Communication Outcome Measure [ACOM]) and secondary outcome measures were examined at pretreatment, posttreatment, and 6 weeks posttreatment.
Results: The ACOM did not show significant changes in the planned omnibus analyses. Post hoc analyses suggested that the large group, but not dyad, treatment condition showed a treatment effect on the ACOM from pre- to posttreatment. Both treatment conditions showed changes on a measure of naming, and the dyads also showed improvement on a measure of repetition.
Conclusions: The study failed to show the effects of conversation treatment in the omnibus analysis, but there was evidence that conversation group treatment, delivered in a large group, is effective for people with chronic aphasia. This study also illustrated how manipulating the size of the group may alter the outcomes for individuals. The results of this study offer support for a cost-effective treatment option for PwA across the continuum of care.
期刊介绍：
Mission: AJSLP publishes peer-reviewed research and other scholarly articles on all aspects of clinical practice in speech-language pathology. The journal is an international outlet for clinical research pertaining to screening, detection, diagnosis, management, and outcomes of communication and swallowing disorders across the lifespan as well as the etiologies and characteristics of these disorders. Because of its clinical orientation, the journal disseminates research findings applicable to diverse aspects of clinical practice in speech-language pathology. AJSLP seeks to advance evidence-based practice by disseminating the results of new studies as well as providing a forum for critical reviews and meta-analyses of previously published work.
Scope: The broad field of speech-language pathology, including aphasia; apraxia of speech and childhood apraxia of speech; aural rehabilitation; augmentative and alternative communication; cognitive impairment; craniofacial disorders; dysarthria; fluency disorders; language disorders in children; speech sound disorders; swallowing, dysphagia, and feeding disorders; and voice disorders.
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