Recognition of Depression in Aphasic Stroke Patients

A.C. Laska^a, B. Mårtensson^c, T. Kahan^b, M. von Arbin^a, V. Murray^a

Department of Clinical Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Danderyd Hospital,
^aDivision of Internal Medicine,
^bDivision of Cardiology, and
^cDepartment of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden

Address of Corresponding Author

Cerebrovascular Diseases 2007;24:74-79 (DOI: 10.1159/000103119)

---

Key Words

• Aphasia, depression
• Acute stroke
• Validity, assessment of depression

---

Abstract

Background: Data on post-stroke depression in aphasia are scarce. Methods: Eighty-nine acute stroke patients with aphasia of all types were followed for 6 months to investigate if depression can be reliably diagnosed (DSM-IV criteria) and validly assessed by the verbal Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) and a global technique (Clinical Global Impressions Rating Scale for Severity). A standard aphasia test was performed. Results: In 60 patients (67%) at baseline and in 100% at 6 months, comprehension allowed a reliable DSM-IV diagnosis. Among these patients MADRS was feasible in 95% at baseline and in 100% at 6 months. The assistance of relatives and staff increases the feasibility and decreases the validity. Depression was identified in 24% during the 6 months. Conclusion: Depression diagnosis and severity rating can reliably be made in the acute phase in at least two thirds of aphasic patients, and feasibility increases over time.

Copyright © 2007 S. Karger AG, Basel

---

Author Contacts

Ann Charlotte Laska, MD
Department of Clinical Sciences, Karolinska Institutet, Danderyd Hospital
Division of Internal Medicine
SE-182 88 Stockholm (Sweden)
Tel. +46 8 655 6409, Fax +46 8 622 6810, E-Mail ann-charlotte.laska@ds.se

---

Article Information

Received: August 22, 2006
Accepted: January 3, 2007
Published online: May 23, 2007
Number of Print Pages : 6
Number of Figures : 1, Number of Tables : 3, Number of References : 23

Help for Dyslexics

None of my own kids are dyslexic, although I believe that one of them suffers from a mild case of visual aphasia.

Free Help for Dyslexia

Dyslexia? Now there is Free Help

Now there is free online help for people who have dyslexia or simply did not learn to read well while going to school. It is a click-‘n-learn program. Students and adults may learn decoding, basic reading skills, and advanced reading skills all with the click of a mouse.

The program is called ReadingBySix. It provides a systematic approach to helping people defeat dyslexia and related reading problems. You will notice measurable progress from week to week provided participants are active in their studies and do their assignments. The online courses are virtually free when you give a small donation. If you choose not to donate, they are completely free.

Dyslexia is a distinct learning disability characterized by difficulties in decoding individual words. These difficulties may not show up in other cognitive and academic abilities. Dyslexia results from the confusion caused by the brain’s inability to associate abstract symbols with abstract ideas. This includes associating letters and words with the sounds they represent. The key to defeating dyslexia is learning to decode English sounds.

NEXT........................................

We are blessed for help with hearing

Kathryn Byrd, Ph.D., CCC-SLP
Tuscaloosa
Dear Editor: May is Better Hearing and Speech Month, during which the services and accomplishments of speech-language pathologists and audiologists are recognized. As a speech-language pathologist, I am proud of those in our profession who serve children with communication impairments in schools, and, for preschoolers, in their natural environment, as well as those who serve the adult population who experience communication deficits because of strokes, accidents, disease, etc. Through their services, these individuals can lead more productive lives. Audiologists, of course, deal with hearing impairment, whose services, with our graying population, will be needed more and more.

I am a fan of the comic strip “For Better or Worse" by Lynn Patterson. How appropriate it is that in May, Better Hearing and Speech Month, there is a series on treating the grandfather Jim’s aphasia by a speech-language pathologist, and the frustrations Jim and his wife Iris experience when Jim wants to say one thing and something entirely different comes out. Patterson presents an excellent and compassionate depiction.

I hope those who experience hearing or speech/language difficulties seek help. So much can be done. We are blessed to have many excellent resources in West Alabama, with the public schools, the University of Alabama Speech and Hearing Center, Early Intervention, Easter Seals, the VA, the hospitals, etc. The phone book lists all these resources.

www.aphasiatoolbox.com .

Please visit our website and let us know what you think. We are eager for feedback so we can continue traveling that pathway of improvement. Thanks to all of you who have helped us to develop the innovative and effective treatment and self-help protocols and materials. I have had the wonderful experience of working with the best patients and caregivers ever. Thanks you all so much. What a great beginning.

DynaVox Release Visual Scene Display

Now available on the DynaVox V and Vmax is a new communication framework for individuals with chronic aphasia and traumatic brain injury. This exciting framework was developed by a collaborative team headed by Dr. David R. Beukelman, PhD, the AAC-RERC and jointly tested to ensure integration with the DynaVox Series 5 software.

The new Visual Scene Display for Aphasia and TBI allows device users to use their own contextually meaningful images or photographs for a variety of conversational situations. These new displays allow the ability to easily program conversational messages related to a person or setting, all without the need to navigate to a new page. These visual cues greatly enhance the communication experience for those with for Aphasia and TBI.

Wii Sports helps boxer recover from stroke

Here’s a heartwarming tale to start the week. Albert Liaw was a boxer, until a spontaneous stroke and brain injury laid him low. However, he’s now in rehabilitation, which includes heavy use of… Wii Sports Boxing!

Edmonton’s Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital is using Wii Sports to help patients regain lost movement, and get their brains back up to speed. It’s not just boxing either, but also the tennis and golf elements of Wii Sports.

Good Dog Foundation Helps Patients Recover

The Good Dog Foundation is a pet friendly program that helps patients recover.

Robert Dresel is one of those people.

Robert was a decorated US Navy commander until he retired with his family to a farm in Virginia.

Bob says his great love was singing as a member of a barbershop quartet until six years ago when he suffered from a stroke and now he can remember the words, he just can not say them.

Bob suffers from aphasia which is an impairment of the ability to use or comprehend words.

Some speech pathologists use therapy dogs from the Good Dog Foundation to help their patients.

The dogs can not help the patients speak, but they can help them escape. "They are nonjudgmental. They are going to wait and be patient and give love. People don't understand, and they get a little impatient and they want to move on and they're saying is it this, is it that? And dogs aren't doing that, they're just giving their love,” says Ellen Potter, speech pathologist.