EVALUATION OF TREATMENT OF ACQUIRED SPEECH AND LANGUAGE DISORDERS

The increasing incidence of severe neurological injury and the decreasing patient age are making acquired language disorders a frequent cause of chronic disability and an important social issue. The purpose of this project is to examine the factors contributing to/disrupting optimal realisation of potential of persons with speech/language disorders through longitudinal monitoring of three sets of factors over two years: a) treatment variables (type, onset time, frequency); b) factors related to environment interaction and c) features of the language concerned (the English diagnostic and treatment models used in Serbia are unsuitable for Serbian). Monitoring will include periodic retests at six month intervals, starting in the acute phase after brain lesion. The study will include about 100–150 patients with acquired language disorders and their families. The anticipated results are the assessment of present evaluation procedures for speech-language functions and rehabilitation protocols in the treatment of aphasia and related disorders. We also expect to expand the knowledge of the characteristics of language deficit in Serbia’s population, develop suitable diagnostic instruments, introduce innovations in therapeutic procedures towards more efficient reconfiguration of abilities and/or overcoming permanent speech impediments through compensation, and discover the psychosocial obstacles to optimal social integration and realisation of the primary roles of the patients.