An Investigation of the Efficacy of Computerized Therapy in Naming Skills in a Patient with Nonfluent Aphasia: A Single-Subject Study

Abstract

Introduction: Anomia - naming deficiency - is considered as the main symptom of aphasia. Although there are various treatments for naming deficiency, with the advent of technology, one of the ways that has expanded today is the use of computers in treatment. Although the effectiveness of computerized therapies has been investigated in different languages, due to the lack of examination of these treatments in the Persian language, the present study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of TAVANA computerized therapy in naming skills in a Persian-speaking nonfluent aphasia patient. Materials and Methods: This was a single-subject study in which a patient with nonfluent aphasia and naming deficiency was chosen to receive computer therapy. In addition, a collection of non-teaching words was considered to evaluate the effect of generalization for the patient. Visual analysis and effect size of the percetage of non-overlapping data (PND) were used for data analysis. Results: Computer therapy improved the confronting naming ability in the client (PND = 100). There was also an improvement in the maintenance and generalization of untrained items as a result of this treatment (PND = 100). Conclusion: The results of the study support the effectiveness of TAVANA computerized therapy, as an effective, intensive, low-cost, and admissible treatment in the Persian language, in improving the naming skills of a patient with nonfluent aphasia.

Keywords

• Aphasia
• Anomia
• Computer assisted therapy