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01-05-2023 | Aphasia | Research Article

Point-light display: a new tool to improve verb recovery in patients with aphasia? A pilot study

Authors: Victor Francisco, Frédéric Louis, Romain David, Maxime Billot, Anne-Laure Rouquette, Lucie Broc, Christel Bidet-Ildei

Published in: Experimental Brain Research | Issue 5/2023

Abstract

Some studies have demonstrated that Action Observation (AO) could help patients with aphasia to recover use of verbs. However, the role of kinematics in this effect has remained unknown. The main aim was to assess the effectiveness of a complementary intervention based on the observation of action kinematics in patients with aphasia. Seven aphasic patients (3 males, 4 females) aged between 55 and 88 years participated in the studies. All patients received a classical intervention and an additional, specific intervention based on action observation. This consisted in visualizing a static image or a point-light sequence representing a human action and in trying to name the verb representing the action. In each session, 57 actions were visualized: 19 represented by a static drawing, 19 by a non-focalized point-light sequence, i.e., a point-light display with all dots in white, and 19 by a focalized point-light sequence, i.e., a point-light display (PLD) with the dots corresponding to the main limbs in yellow. Before (pre-test) and after (post-test) the intervention, each patient performed the same denomination task, in which all actions were presented in photographs. The results showed a significant improvement in performance between pre and post-test, but only when the actions were presented in focalized and non-focalized point-light sequences during the intervention. The presentation of action kinematics seems crucial in the recovery of verbs in patients with aphasia. This should be considered by speech therapists in their interventions.

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Title: Point-light display: a new tool to improve verb recovery in patients with aphasia? A pilot study
Authors: Victor Francisco
Frédéric Louis
Romain David
Maxime Billot
Anne-Laure Rouquette
Lucie Broc
Christel Bidet-Ildei
Publication date: 01-05-2023
Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Keyword: Aphasia
Published in: Experimental Brain Research / Issue 5/2023
Print ISSN: 0014-4819
Electronic ISSN: 1432-1106
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-023-06607-8

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Point-light display: a new tool to improve verb recovery in patients with aphasia? A pilot study

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