Acquired alexia: Lessons from successful treatment

Two individuals with anemic aphasia and acquired alexia were each provided treatment for their reading impairment. Although reading of single words in isolation was fairly accurate, their text reading was slow and effortful, including functor substitutions and semantic errors. Prior to treatment, reading reaction times for single words showed grammatical class and word-length effects. Both patients responded positively to a treatment protocol that included two phases: (1) multiple oral rereading of text, and (2) reading phrase-formatted text that had increased spacing between phrasal clauses. Their reading rates for text improved while maintaining good comprehension. Following treatment, reading reaction times for single words showed the elimination of grammatical class and word-length effects, suggesting improved access to word forms, particularly functors.