Cognitive Reserve and Linguistic Resilience in Bilingual Hispanics With Primary Progressive Aphasia

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying bilingual individuals with primary progressive aphasia PPA, a condition marked by difficulties in speech and language. This trial evaluates the effects of speech-language treatments tailored to the cultural and linguistic backgrounds of bilingual speakers with PPA. It aims to understand how bilingual experiences, like language use and strength, relate to treatment response and to explore brain mechanisms involved in language recovery and resilience in PPA. The study includes two main behavioral interventions based on PPA variant types. Participants with nonfluentagrammatic PPA engage in Video-Implemented Script Training for Aphasia VISTA, practicing personally relevant scripts via teletherapy and independent computer exercises. Those with logopenic or semantic variant PPA receive Lexical Retrieval Training LRT, focusing on word retrieval strategies through teletherapy and computer-based practice. These treatments occur over several weeks with assessments before, after, and at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. Additionally, some participants undergo brain imaging before treatment. Participants complete regular evaluations of speech intelligibility and naming ability, along with questionnaires and speech feature analyses at multiple time points. The study monitors treatment effects through teletherapy sessions, independent practice, and structured language assessments. Safety and progress are tracked throughout the study, which lasts over a year to capture both immediate and longer-term outcomes of the tailored speech-language interventions.

Cognitive Reserve and Response to Speech-Language Intervention in Bilingual Speakers With Primary Progressive Aphasia