Savytska N. - Theoretical analysis of the problem of gestural stimulation while working with post-stroke aphasia patients

Contact: SAVYTSKA Nadia, assistant of the department of speech therapy and special methods in Kamyanets-Podilsky National Ivan Ohienko University, Kamyanets-Podilsky, Ukraine. Academic interests: correction of aphatic disorders and restoration of swallowing function in adults with organic lesions of the central nervous system.

The article contains the analyses of theoretical aspects of gesture usage as a therapeutic tool in the speech therapy rehabilitation of patients with aphasia. The paper characterizes studies that indicate a close relation between verbal and non-verbal communication. There are defined main types of gestures and their classification, as well as the communicative function of gesticulation for people with preserved speech and the ones with aphasia. There is a description of gesture functioning peculiarities for people with aphasia and their impact on the process of speech therapy rehabilitation. There were analyzed results of previously conducted studies on the effectiveness of gestural stimulation as a method of restoring communication in patients with aphasia. It allowed to state following. Most studies indicate that the use of gestures in impaired communication contributes to the restoration of verbal speech. As well as improves the search for needed vocabulary (both nouns and verbs), helps the patient to remember words better, and in the case of unintelligible speech to convey and recognize the content of the message. It also provides an opportunity for the patient to maintain contact with the surrounding people. Difficulties identified while the research are the use of gestural stimulation in  remedial learning, namely motor disorders, particularly limb apraxia, which is common in stroke patients. The article contains the description of tests generally accepted in the neurological clinic, with the help of which it is possible to assess the preservation of complex forms of praxis in patients with organic lesions of the central nervous system. Furthermore, there is the analysis of studies that deny the positive influence of gestures on communication in people with aphasia, or determine the effectiveness of their use only in working with patients with a mild degree of aphasia.

Keywords: communication, verbal communication, non-verbal communication, post-stroke aphasia, restorative learning, gestures, apraxia of limbs.