25th International Conference of Alzheimer’s Disease International

Thessaloniki (Greece), March 10-13, 2010

Editor MagdaTsolaki

MEDIMOND

InternatIonalProceedIngs

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Printed in September 2010 by Editografica • Bologna (Italy) ISBN 978-88-7587-582-4

Index

Front page ...... I Foreword ...... III

Art therapy for people with dementia - case report

Mimica N, Glamuzina K, Vucic K, Gatin M, Dajcic M, Dajcic T, Simic G, Mladinov M, Trescec-Ivicic M, Novy-Radonic E ...... 95

The Effects of Intervention Using Medication and Psychological Education
for Amnesiac Outpatients
Minami K., Arai S., Watanabe C. & Katayama S...... 101

Increased incidence of visual hallucination in dementia patients complicated
with diabetes mellitus
NakamotoRiwa, Yamada Shiro, Yamaguchi Narihito, MatusbaraSaburo ...... 105

The use of Western Aphasia Battery – Revised test (WAB-R) for the study of speech disturbances in patients with Alzheimer’s disease
Pitopoulou M and Nasios G ...... 107

The italian version of the carer’s needs assessment for dementia (cna-d): psy- chometric properties and influence of patients/carer characteristics on answer’ profiles
Iorio S., Manni B., Monzani M., Neviani F., Chattat R., Wancata J., Pelosi A. and Neri M. ... 109

Thessaloniki, Greece, 10-13 March, 2010 VII Supporting the family caregiver through flexible sponsored training

Maldonado, M. & Pierson, C...... 115

Knowledge Transfer: The Approach of Alzheimer’s Australia Alzheimer’s Disease International, March 2010
Rees G ...... 119

Outcome measures comparison between caregiver’s supportive and informative groups
Sgarbi C., Bergonzini E., Fabbo A., Grandi C.A., Marzi N., Rebecchi D., Chattat R...... 123

The use of Western Aphasia Battery – Revised test (WAB-R) for the study of speech disturbances in patients with Alzheimer’s disease

Pitopoulou M and Nasios G

Technological and educational institute of Epirus, school of health and welfare, department of speech and language therapy.Ioannina, Greece.

Introduction

Dementia is a degenerative disorder which affects higher cognitive functions in- cluding speech. This research conducted in order to study speech disorders in patients with dementia, given that from the first stages of the disease naming difficulties are observed.

Materials and methods

For the research two diagnostic tests were used, the Mini Mental State Examina- tion (MMSE) and two sections of Western Aphasia Battery Revised (WAB R), the Auditory Verbal Comprehension (with tasks yes / no questions, auditory word recognition and sequential commands) and Naming and Word Finding, (with tasks object naming, word fluency, sentence completion and responsive speech).

In the research participated fifteen patients with moderate Alzheimer’s disease (MMSE 13.4+-6.1) and ten age-matched healthy subjects, who constituted the control group, so as to attain the comparison of results.

To the participants of the research, firstly the MMSE was administrated, so as to be shown the discount degree of cognitive functions and secondly the WAB R. The process that is followed in WAB R, has as follows:

In the section Auditory Verbal Comprehension in the task yes / no questions the participants were asked to answer twenty questions, that require yes / no answer.

In the auditory word recognition participants are supposed to show six real objects, six pictured objects, six forms, six letters, six numbers, six colors, six furniture, six body parts, five fingers and seven parts of body that are found either left or right, as they are named by the examiner.

Finally in the sequential commands participants were called to execute a line of eleven commands, which begun from one simple and leads in multiple.

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108 25th International Conference of Alzheimer’s Disease International

In the section Naming and Word Finding, as we reported, it was constituted from the object naming, word fluency, sentence completion and responsive speech, as follows:

In the object naming, the participants were asked to name twenty objects, pre- sented by the examiner.

In the word fluency the participants should name as many animals as they can in one minute.

In the sentence completion the participants have to complete what the examiner says.

Finally in the responsive speech, the target is to answer five questions from the participants.

Results

The analysis of the results shows that an significant difference in the perfor- mance between healthy and patients, in MMSE and in both sections of WAB R. This difference can be spotted if someone observes the following table of results and graphemes.

Conclusions

We conclude that WAB-R is an easy-to-use, reliable test for detecting speech disturbances in demented patients and it can be used from the speech and language pathologist in order to plan therapeutic interventions to improve or stabilize patients’ ability to communicate.

Reference

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  2. SHIPLEY,K. & McAFFE,J. Assessment in SpeechLanguage Pathology A Resource Manual. Delmar: Singular Thomson Learning. (1998)
  3. HEDGE,M.N A. Coursebook on Aphasia and other Neurogenic Language Disirders.SecondEdition.London:SingularPublising Group INC. (1998)
  4. GARRARD P, CARROLL E. : Lost in semantic space: a multi-modal, non-verbal assess- ment of feature knowledge in semantic dementia, Brain. 129, (5, p1152-63) 2006, May
  5. CRUTCH SJ, WARRINGTON EK. : Contrasting patterns of comprehension for subordinate, basic level, and subordinate names in semantic dementia and aphasic stroke patients ,CognNeuropsychol. 25, (4, p582-600). 2008, Jun
  6. JEFFERIES E et all. : Deficits of knowledge versus executive control in semantic cognition : insights from cued naming , Neuropsychologia. 46, (2, p649-58). 2008, Jan 31