SemaFoRe: Comparing word retrieval treatments for aphasia via a randomised crossover trial.

Abstract

Word retrieval difficulties are one of the most prevalent symptoms of aphasia and we now have good evidence from single-case studies and case series that some treatment methods for word retrieval result in improvements, at least with target words (see e.g. Nickels, 2002, for a review). However, important questions remain about predicting outcome for an individual given a particular treatment. This study, SemaFoRe, is a pilot cross-over RCT contrasting two commonly used treatments, Semantic Feature Analysis (SFA; Boyle, 2010) with Repetition in the Presence of the Picture (RIPP) . Both approaches have evidence to support them but they have some key differences: studies using SFA suggest generalisation to items not seen in treatment; it has a semantic focus and, potentially encourages clients to adopt a strategy to aid word retrieval. In contrast, RIPP has a phonological basis and is relatively simple therapy. The SemaFoRe study aims to: (i) Obtain the information needed to design and power a definitive cross-over RCT. (ii) Compare the effectiveness of SFA and RIPP (iii) Evaluate whether the effects of either treatment generalise (iv) Explore prediction of benefit/gain. Within the abstract we present data from an interim analysis of 9 participants who have completed all stages; by the time of the conference we will have final data from 23