RESUMEN
The procedure generally used to diagnose aphasic patients consists of classifying them in one of the classic syndromes on the basis of the analysis of their symptoms. However, this taxonomy has several important problems, the main one being that it does not take into account the variability of aphasic patients, as there are many more disorder profiles than those included in the syndromes. In order to test the homogeneity of a sample of patients diagnosed with the classic taxonomy, 15 aphasic patients (5 Broca, 5 Wernicke and 5 Conduction) and 5 healthy controls were tested with nine comprehension and production tasks. Participants were aged 38 to 81 years old. The results indicate the existence of great variability in patients labeled with the same diagnosis, as revealed by the differences in within-group scores in each task, and a limited adjustment to the expected profile, with some patients showing symptoms allegedly corresponding to other syndromes. Our results call attention to the need to study each patient individually and interpret their disorders regardless of the syndromes.
Asunto(s)
Afasia/diagnóstico , Adulto , Anciano , Anciano de 80 o más Años , Afasia/clasificación , Afasia de Broca/diagnóstico , Afasia de Conducción/diagnóstico , Afasia de Wernicke/diagnóstico , Diagnóstico Diferencial , Femenino , Humanos , Pruebas del Lenguaje , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Medición de la Producción del Habla , SíndromeRESUMEN
El procedimiento generalmente empleado para diagnosticar a los pacientes afásicos consiste en analizar sus síntomas y en base a esos síntomas clasificarlos en uno de los síndromes clásicos. Sin embargo, esa taxonomía tiene algunos problemas importantes, el principal que no tiene en cuenta la variedad de pacientes afásicos existentes, ya que hay muchos más trastornos de los que recogen los síndromes. Con objeto de comprobar el grado de homogeneidad de una muestra de pacientes pertenecientes a diferentes síndromes, en este estudio se aplicaron nueve tareas de comprensión y producción oral a quince pacientes (cinco afásicos de Broca, cinco de Wernicke y cinco de Conducción) y a cinco personas sanas, con edades comprendidas entre 38 y 81 años. Los resultados muestran la existencia de una gran heterogeneidad entre los pacientes etiquetados bajo un mismo síndrome, tal como indica la variabilidad de puntuaciones dentro de los grupos en cada tarea. Por otra parte se observa un escaso ajuste al perfil esperado, ya que algunos pacientes presentan síntomas correspondientes a otros síndromes. Nuestros resultados sugieren la necesidad de estudiar a cada paciente de forma individual e interpretar sus trastornos independientemente de los síndromes (AU)
The procedure generally used to diagnose aphasic patients consists of classifying them in one of the classic syndromes on the basis of the analysis of their symptoms. However, this taxonomy has several important problems, the main one being that it does not take into account the variability of aphasic patients, as there are many more disorder profiles than those included in the syndromes. In order to test the homogeneity of a sample of patients diagnosed with the classic taxonomy, 15 aphasic patients (5 Broca, 5 Wernicke and 5 Conduction) and 5 healthy controls were tested with nine comprehension and production tasks. Participants were aged 38 to 81 years old. The results indicate the existence of great variability in patients labeled with the same diagnosis, as revealed by the differences in within-group scores in each task, and a limited adjustment to the expected profile, with some patients showing symptoms allegedly corresponding to other syndromes. Our results call attention to the need to study each patient individually and interpret their disorders regardless of the syndromes (AU)
