REEDUCATION OF GESTURAL COMMUNICATION IN A CASE OF CHRONIC GLOBAL APHASIA AND LIMB APRAXIA

Since neuropsychological studies have shown that global aphasics can communicate by gestures, much rehabilitative effort has been devoted to potentiate the residual nonverbal abilities, and especially the effectiveness of gestural communication. Most therapists have tried to teach aphasic patients to memorise specific gestures taken from well-codified sign systems, but have failed to demonstrate substantial improvements in everyday-life communication. In this article we report the results of pantomimic training of GM, a 63-year-old woman with chronic global aphasia and severe limb apraxia, who did not show any improvements following standardised speech re-education. A special pantomime training program was devised, aimed to focus her attention on critical features of gestures. After treatment the patient showed a significant improvement of gestural ability measured by means of a pantomimic referential task.