Word finding disorder
Word- finding difficulties can occur in both childhood and adulthood. Disorders of this type that occur in children are usually transient. Treatment by a speech therapist can secure and accelerate the healing process.
What are word finding disorders?
In a scientific context, a distinction is made between dysphasia and aphasia in word-finding disorders. While dysphasia is a developmental disorder, aphasia refers to impairment of the ability to express oneself verbally. This can occur as a result of neurological injuries and with tumors .
There are different degrees of difficulty in aphasia. More severe progressive forms affect not only speaking, but also understanding and the ability to read. Impairments in word finding are expressed in conversation by frequent pauses, which arise when searching for the right word. Errors in word choice and word form can also occur in word-finding disorders.
causes
Word-finding disorders are caused by damage to the language-relevant areas of the language-dominant cerebral hemisphere in the cerebral cortex. Cerebral vascular insults ( strokes ), which can lead to an interruption in blood flow or bleeding, which affects the functionality of the language-relevant areas, are among the most common causes. Meningitis , brain tumours, accidents ( cranial brain trauma ) and dementia diseases (e.g. Alzheimer’s dementia ) can also underlie the word-finding disorders and be the cause of this language disorder .
When to the doctor?
A word-finding disorder does not necessarily have to be treated by a doctor. This disorder occurs mainly in older people and is a common phenomenon in old age, which unfortunately cannot be treated directly. However, if the word-finding disorder occurs suddenly, a doctor should be consulted.
It is not uncommon for children to be affected by word-finding disorders, especially those who grow up bilingually. This is also a common symptom. It can also be treated relatively well at home through language training and by reading books. In this case, it is not necessary to see a doctor.
If the word-finding disorder occurs after an accident or after a blow to the head and other symptoms such as speech and vision disorders occur, a doctor must be consulted. In this case, it may be a serious brain injury or trauma , which definitely needs to be investigated. Treatment is not always possible and depends heavily on the cause of the word finding disorder. However, if this cause is not chronic, the word-finding disorder can be treated with simple means.
diagnosis and course
The diagnosis is important in order to achieve optimal results in therapy. It is necessary to first localize the functional impairment that underlies the word-finding disorder. For this purpose, the level of disturbance in question is delimited in a word processing model. Discussions between the examiner and the patient are also part of the assessment of the findings, as are further examinations in which the symptoms are examined in a more targeted manner using selected methods.Studies on word production and word comprehension are carried out. Not only oral but also written performance is checked. Standardized test methods are used (e.g. Bogenhauser semantics analysis, LeMo).
Appropriate therapy methods are selected on the basis of the neurolinguistic profile of the person concerned, which results from impaired and retained abilities in the test procedures carried out. It is also taken into account how the patient himself deals with a language impairment, for example in which way the spontaneous use of compensatory strategies takes place.
Close relatives are also asked about this. Following the assessment of the findings, both the patient and their relatives are informed about the nature of their impairment and concrete therapy goals are discussed. The constant involvement of the relatives is also an important part during the subsequent therapy.
complications
The complications of a word-finding disorder depend heavily on its severity. A word-finding disorder always affects the life of the patient. Children in particular are severely affected by this disorder, as it can also trigger bullying and teasing. Social problems and psychological difficulties often arise here, which can lead to social exclusion. In a more severe form of the word-finding disorder, those affected cannot understand or read sentences. The choice of words is very limited, which can lead to difficulties in communication, in everyday life and at work. The quality of life decreases significantly due to the word-finding disorder.
The treatment itself can be carried out in different ways and always aims at the cause of the word finding disorder. Therapy with individual lessons is necessary so that the person concerned can learn to speak and read to the full extent again. There are no complications during the treatment, but it is not always successful. Often the word-finding disorders cannot be treated completely, but only partially and accompany the patient for the rest of his life. As a rule, the word-finding disorder does not affect life expectancy.
treatment and therapy
In the treatment of word finding disorders, a distinction is made between direct and compensatory methods. The treatment is based on the identified neurolinguistic performance pattern. The use of direct methods directly targets the dysfunction. For example, exercises to categorize generic terms (e.g. cucumber > vegetable) or to retrieve semantic features (e.g. cucumber > plant, edible, green) are carried out.
In contrast to this, exercises aimed at accessing the word form and the word form itself are used to improve impairments of the word form level, for example giving initial help when object images are to be named orally. For example, the first sound of a word is given. In addition, detour strategies in which retained skills are used to support word finding, e.g. B. writing the first letter or even the whole word as an aid to oral word retrieval.
Basically, speech therapy is divided into three phases. The first phase, which lasts about four to six weeks, is called the activation phase and is used for language stimulation. The extent of the treatment depends on the general condition of the person concerned. The second phase, the disorder-specific practice phase, primarily deals with language-systematic disorders. It generally begins as individual therapy. However, it is possible to continue it later as group therapy. The last phase, also known as the consolidation phase, is about training the patient to use his language skills as well as possible. This phase is generally done as group therapy.
prevention
There is no direct prevention of word-finding disorders, as they are the result of other diseases. However, it is possible to prevent some of these causative diseases. There are several ways to significantly reduce the risk of stroke, which is considered one of the main causes of word finding difficulties.One of the biggest risk factors for stroke is smoking . Therefore, it is best for smokers to quit smoking or at least limit their cigarette consumption. Another cause is clogged veins, which in turn can be caused by high blood pressure .
A low-salt diet and reducing weight in overweight people are recommended to lower blood pressure. Endurance sports such as jogging or walking also help against high blood pressure . Even those who do not suffer from high blood pressure or are overweight can reduce their risk of stroke through regular exercise.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.