title: Combined Aphasia and Apraxia of Speech Treatment (CAAST): effects of a novel therapy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This investigation was designed to examine the effects of a newly developed treatment for aphasia and acquired apraxia of speech (AOS). Combined Aphasia and Apraxia of Speech Treatment (CAAST) targets language and speech production simultaneously, with treatment techniques derived from Response Elaboration Training (Kearns, 1985) and Sound Production Treatment (Wambaugh, Kalinyak-Fliszar, West, & Doyle, 1998). The purpose of this study was to determine whether CAAST was associated with positive changes in verbal language and speech production with speakers with aphasia and AOS.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four participants with chronic aphasia and AOS received CAAST applied sequentially to sets of pictures in the context of multiple baseline designs. CAAST entailed elaboration of participant-initiated utterances, with sound production training applied as needed to the elaborated productions. The dependent variables were (a) production of correct information units (CIUs; Nicholas & Brookshire, 1993) in response to experimental picture stimuli, (b) percentage of consonants correct in sentence repetition, and (c) speech intelligibility.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CAAST was associated with increased CIU production in trained and untrained picture sets for all participants. Gains in sound production accuracy and speech intelligibility varied across participants; a modification of CAAST to provide additional speech production treatment may be desirable.
authors: Julie L
authors: JL
authors: Wambaugh
authors: Sandra
authors: S
authors: Wright
authors: Christina
authors: C
authors: Nessler
authors: Shannon C
authors: SC
authors: Mauszycki
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001037:Aphasia / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D001072:Apraxias / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010700:Phonetics; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D013065:Speech Intelligibility; D013068:Speech Production Measurement; D013070:Speech Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome