There are varying types of aphasia that have been identified, each reflecting different language impairments and underlying brain regions affected. The following are some of the commonly recognized types of aphasia:
Broca’s aphasia is characterized by difficulty in producing speech and expressing thoughts verbally. People with this type of aphasia often have a limited vocabulary, use short and telegraphic sentences, struggle with word-finding, and experience effortful speech production. However, their comprehension of language is relatively preserved.
Wernicke’s aphasia primarily affects language comprehension. Individuals with this type of aphasia may express fluent speech and grammatically correct sentences, however, words sound strange (paraphasias). Often, their spoken vocabulary is expressing similar sounding words for an intended specific noun. They may have difficulty understanding spoken or written language and struggle to find the right words.
Global aphasia is the most severe form of aphasia, resulting in significant impairments in both expressive and receptive language skills. People with global aphasia have limited speech output, with mostly single words or short phrases. Their comprehension is severely impaired, and they struggle to understand or follow instructions.
Anomic aphasia primarily affects word retrieval and naming. Individuals with this type of aphasia have difficulty finding the right words, exhibiting long pauses between words, and pauses to complete a thought. They often describe objects rather than naming them directly. Despite these word-finding difficulties, their comprehension and grammar skills are relatively intact.
Conduction aphasia is characterized by difficulty repeating words and phrases. People with this type of aphasia can comprehend spoken and written language reasonably well, but they struggle with repetition tasks. They may exhibit paraphasias, which involve substituting or rearranging sounds or words in speech.
Transcortical aphasia includes several subtypes, such as transcortical motor aphasia and transcortical sensory aphasia. Transcortical motor aphasia is similar to Broca’s aphasia, with difficulty in initiating speech, but individuals often have better repetition skills. Transcortical sensory aphasia resembles Wernicke’s aphasia, with impaired comprehension but relatively intact repetition abilities.
Excessive distilled alcohol consumption over many years leading to cerebrovascular accident (CVA).
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