What Is Expressive Aphasia and What Causes It?
Expressive aphasia, also known as Broca’s aphasia, is a language disorder caused by damage to parts of the brain that control speaking and language comprehension. It can be triggered by certain medical conditions or brain injuries.
Aphasia harms a person’s ability to use and understand words. The effects of aphasia may get better over time, but in most cases, the symptoms will never completely go away.
Aphasia can be very distressing for its victims, and it’s also hard on their close friends and relatives. But there are ways to help people cope with aphasia.
What Causes Aphasia
Aphasia may occur as the result of strokes, dementia, or brain tumors. But it can also be caused by blunt force trauma to the head that results in a traumatic brain injury (TBI).
According to the CDC, over 220,000 people are hospitalized for brain injuries every year. Events that may cause aphasia include:
- Slip and fall injuries
- Automobile crashes
- Motorcycle accidents
- Truck accidents
- Bicycle accidents
- Sports injuries
- Gunshot wounds and violent attacks
Signs of Aphasia
Aphasia inhibits the victim’s ability to speak, read, and understand spoken language. It may cause people to become frustrated or withdrawn. Symptoms of aphasia include:
- Speaking in short or incomplete sentences
- Saying unrecognizable words
- Reading and writing is strenuous or impossible
- Trouble naming common objects
- Difficulty finding the words you want to use
- Difficulty following instructions
- Repeating sentences or words
- Difficulty understanding conversations
- Leaving out certain parts of speech such as articles of prepositions
Caring for Someone with Aphasia
There is currently no standard treatment for aphasia, but research is being conducted to find medications that may help relieve the symptoms.
Loved ones and close associates can make things easier for people with aphasia by demonstrating patience and understanding. Helpful strategies for enhancing communication and reducing frustration caused by aphasia include:
- Speech and language rehabilitation
- Professional counseling
- Limiting conversation to just one person
- Using gestures or pointing to objects
- Allowing them time to respond
- Don’t leave them out of conversations
- Reducing distraction in their environment
How a Personal Injury Attorney Can Help
If someone you love is suffering from aphasia caused by another person’s careless behavior, your personal injury attorney can file a claim to help you recover damages. This may include money to pay for expenses caused by the accident such as:
- Current and future medical costs
- Loss of income
- Rehabilitation
- Transportation to therapy sessions
- Loss of future earning potential
- Physical and emotional distress
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Confidentially reviewed by Attorney Mark Breyer