TOPIC

Aphasia research

Everything we have read on aphasia. Each paper is summarised from the full article rather than its abstract, so the limitations are in there too, and the funding wherever the paper declares it.

320 PAPERS · PAGE 7 OF 7 · NEWEST FIRST

• SLPOther2026Cross-Modality Treatment Generalization in Sentence Comprehension in Aphasia: Evidence From Structural Priming and Webcam-Based Eye-Tracking.International journal of language & communication disordersSix sessions of sentence production training did not improve how accurately people with aphasia understood sentences, but they got about 300 ms faster at answering and looked at the right picture sooner. Verb overlap helped control participants, not those with aphasia.
• SLPRCT2024Development of mobile compatible software for cognitive-communication disorder in individuals with Alzheimer's disease.International journal of language & communication disordersA tablet app used at home alongside usual Alzheimer's medication for seven weeks raised cognitive test scores from 15.38 to 19.56 while the control group's fell from 16.13 to 15.19. The groups' language test totals did not differ.
• SLPSystematic Review2024Comparative Efficacy of Cognitive Training for Post-Stroke Aphasia: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.Neurorehabilitation and neural repairAdding working memory training to speech and language therapy improved overall aphasia severity, spontaneous speech, repetition and naming more than therapy alone across 11 trials. Virtual reality-based cognitive training plus therapy came out top for understanding spoken language.
• SLPSystematic Review2025Arabic Aphasia Research Through a Clinical and Linguistic Lens: A Systematic Review of Current Limitations and Future Directions.International journal of language & communication disordersThree decades of research on Arabic-speaking people with aphasia amount to 48 studies, only five of them testing a treatment. Most assessment tools are translated English tests that the authors say risk inaccurate diagnosis.
• SLPRCT2023A randomized crossover single-case series comparing blocked versus random treatment for anomia.Neuropsychological rehabilitationBoth blocked and random practice improved naming of trained words, and to a similar degree. Three months later, the random order held up slightly better. Individual responses varied, so which schedule suits a patient may need a trial of each.
• SLPRCT2025The Benefits of Conversation Group Treatment for Individuals With Chronic Aphasia: Updated Evidence From a Multisite Randomized Controlled Trial on Measures of Language and Communication.American journal of speech-language pathologyBoth conversation treatment formats improved naming for people with chronic aphasia. The trial's main measure, how effectively people felt they communicated, improved only in the large group and only straight after treatment. The overall analysis of that measure found no difference.
• SLPMeta-Analysis2022Does acupuncture therapy improve language function of patients with aphasia following ischemic stroke? A systematic review and meta-analysis.NeuroRehabilitationAdding acupuncture to speech and language therapy improved some language scores in people with aphasia after stroke, especially in the sub-acute phase, but not in the acute phase or on every scale. The 13 trials were small, and none reported side effects.
• SLPSystematic Review2025The Role of Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) in International Stroke Teams: A Systematic Review.International journal of language & communication disordersAcross 42 studies, SLTs were fully embedded in stroke teams in 26, partially involved in 11, and absent in 5. Full integration was predominantly in high-income countries, which also produced 34 of the 42 studies. In low-income settings, SLTs were often missing from stroke units.
• SLPMeta-Analysis2024Does SLT combined with NIBS enhance naming recovery in post-stroke aphasia? A meta-analysis and systematic review.NeuroRehabilitationNIBS added to speech therapy improved naming in post-stroke aphasia patients. rTMS showed a clear benefit; tDCS did not. At follow-up, rTMS kept a real advantage while tDCS faded to a very small, unclear effect.
• SLPSystematic Review2021Cognitive and Linguistic Benefits of Aerobic Exercise: A State-of-the-Art Systematic Review of the Stroke Literature.Frontiers in rehabilitation sciencesAerobic exercise after stroke showed modest gains in memory, attention, and executive function across 17 of the studies reviewed, but only two showed any significant language improvement. The evidence is too mixed to change what you prescribe on Monday.
• SLPNarrative Review2026Something old, something borrowed, something new: frameworks to guide cultural adaptations and their documentation in aphasia treatments.AphasiologyNo original findings. This paper presents step-by-step frameworks for culturally adapting aphasia treatments and a documentation tool for recording those adaptations.
• PTOTSLPSystematic Review2026Transitional care interventions and outcome measures in stroke rehabilitation: a scoping review.Disability and rehabilitationMost stroke transitional care programs center on educating patients and families, while system-level supports like care coordination are rarely built in. Only 3 of 31 measured language or communication outcomes, and 17 restricted or 4 excluded people with aphasia or cognitive-communication disorders.
• SLPOther2026Aphasia severity mediates the relationship between attention and sentence comprehension.AphasiologyAttention does not directly drive sentence comprehension in aphasia. In 58 stroke survivors, the link between attention and sentence processing ran through overall aphasia severity. More severe aphasia meant worse ability to shift attention and more difficulty resisting distraction.
• SLPCohort2026Reported symptoms and patterns of language impairment in bilingual speakers with primary progressive aphasia: a retrospective study.AphasiologyIn bilingual patients with PPA, the less dominant language is the one that declines first and is least preserved. In 93% of cases. Ask which language the patient uses less, not which one they learned first.
• SLPQualitative2026Emotional, Relational, and Identity Shifts in Aphasia Caregiving: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis of Care Partner Experiences.International journal of language & communication disordersCare partners of people with aphasia described conversations losing their depth, feeling pressured to stay relentlessly positive while hiding their own anger and sadness, and taking on roles (financial manager, informal therapist, social advocate) that reshaped who they are.
• SLPCohort2026Training for the Delivery of a Comprehensive High-Dose Aphasia Therapy Program via Telerehabilitation: Effectiveness and Satisfaction With the TeleCHAT Training Package.International journal of language & communication disordersFour SLPs who completed a 5-hour training package delivered their first telerehabilitation aphasia sessions independently, resolving five tech errors without help. All 14 trainees gave a median satisfaction of 5 out of 5, though confidence in troubleshooting was the weakest area.
• SLPPilot2026Better Conversations Communication Partner Training for Progressive and Non-Progressive Aphasia: What Can We Learn From Intensive Conversation Groups?International journal of language & communication disordersNine dyads completed a 2-week intensive group communication-partner programme. Self-rated goal achievement was high, but objective measures did not show a clear group-level change, and PPA confidence gains were lost by 3 months. Too small to change practice, but group CPT is feasible and well-received.
• SLPPilot2026Better Conversations With Parkinson's: Feasibility and Acceptability of a Novel Communication Partner Training Telehealth Intervention.International journal of language & communication disordersA telehealth communication-partner training programme for Parkinson's was acceptable to 7 dyads and easy to deliver, but this is a feasibility study. It does not show the programme improves conversation. Recruitment was slow (7 of 69 invited).
• SLPNarrative Review2026Using Systemic Functional Linguistics in the Clinical Management of Neurogenic Communication Disorders: An Introduction and Worked Example.International journal of language & communication disordersA structured way to code who does what in a conversation is introduced for SLPs treating neurogenic communication disorders. One couple's interaction illustrates the method. No treatment was tested; the coding system is not yet validated for clinical use.
• SLPCase Report2026New patterns of pathological language mixing in bilingual aphasia.AphasiologyIn one woman with severe Broca's aphasia in both Spanish and English, Spanish words intruded more into her English grammar (articles, prepositions) than into her content words. The opposite of what most studies report. This is one person, not a pattern.