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Impaired or absent comprehension or production of, or communication by, speech, writing, or signs, due to an acquired lesion of the dominant cerebral hemisphere. SYN: alogia (1). [G. speechlessness, fr. a- priv. + phasis, speech]
- anomic a. SYN: nominal a..
- associative a. SYN: conduction a..
- auditory a. an impairment in comprehension of the auditory forms of language and communication, including the ability to write from dictation in the presence of normal hearing. Spontaneous speech, reading, and writing are not affected. SYN: acoustic a., word deafness.
- conduction a. a form of a. in which the patient understands spoken and written words, is aware of his deficit, and can speak and write, but skips or repeats words, or substitutes one word for another (paraphasia); word repetition is severely impaired. The responsible lesion is in the associate tracts connecting the various language centers. SYN: associative a..
- expressive a. SYN: motor a..
- global a. in which all aspects of speech and communication are severely impaired. At best, patients can understand or speak only a few words or phrases; they cannot read or write. SYN: mixed a., total a..
- graphic a. SYN: agraphia.
- graphomotor a. SYN: agraphia.
- impressive a. SYN: sensory a..
- jargon a. SYN: agrammatism.
- mixed a. SYN: global a..
- motor a. a type of a. in which there is a deficit in speech production or language output, often accompanied by a deficit in communicating by writing, signs, etc. The patient is aware of the impairment. SYN: anterior a., ataxic a., Broca a., expressive a., nonfluent a..
- nominal a. an a. in which the principal deficit is difficulty in naming persons and objects seen, heard, or felt; due to lesions in various portions of the language area. SYN: amnestic a., amnesic a., anomia, anomic a..
- nonfluent a. SYN: motor a..
- pathematic a. mutism related to anger or strong emotions.
- psychosensory a. SYN: sensory a..
- pure aphasias rare aphasias affecting only one type of communication, e.g., reading, while related communication forms such as writing, auditory comprehension, etc. remain intact.
- semantic a. a. in which objects are correctly named; there is little disturbance in the articulation of words; individual words are understood, but the broader meaning of what is heard cannot be grasped.
- sensory a. a. in which there is impairment in the comprehension of spoken and written words, associated with effortless, articulated, but paraphrastic, speech and writing; malformed words, substitute words, and neologisms are characteristic. When severe, and speech is incomprehensible, it is called jargon a.. The patient often appears unaware of the deficit. SYN: fluent a., impressive a., posterior a., psychosensory a., receptive a., Wernicke a..
- syntactical a. a. in which the words are fairly well pronounced but are spoken in short phrases or poorly constructed sentences without articles, prepositions, or conjunctions.
- total a. SYN: global a..
- transcortical a. an a. in which the unaffected motor and sensory language areas are isolated from the rest of the hemispheric cortex. Subdivided into transcortical sensory and transcortical motor aphasias.
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apha·sia ə-'fā-zh(ē-)ə n loss or impairment of the power to use or comprehend words usu. resulting from brain damage see MOTOR APHASIA compare AMUSIA, ANARTHRIA
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n.
a disorder of language affecting the generation and content of speech and its understanding (it is not a disorder of articulation: see dysarthria). It is caused by disease in the left half of the brain (the dominant hemisphere) in a right-handed person. It is commonly accompanied by difficulties in reading and writing. See also dyslalia.
• aphasic adj.
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apha·sia (ə-faґzhə) [a-1 + Gr. phasis speech] any of a large group of language disorders involving defect or loss of the power of expression by speech, writing, or signs, or of comprehending spoken or written language, due to injury or disease of the brain or to psychogenic causes. Less severe forms are known as dysphasia. See also agrammatism, dysphasia, and paraphasia.Medical dictionary. 2011.