The rehabilitative effects on written language of a combined language and parietal dual-tDCS treatment in a stroke case.
In this paper we report the effect of a combined transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) and speech language therapy on linguistic deficits following left brain damage in a stroke case. We show that simultaneous electrical excitatory stimulation to the left and inhibitory stimulation to the right parietal regions (dual-tDCS) affected writing and reading rehabilitation, enhancing speech therapy outcomes. The results of a comparison with healthy controls showed that application of dual-tDCS could improve, in particular, sub-lexical transcoding and, specifically, the reading of non-words with increasing length and complexity. Positive repercussions on patient's quality of functional communication were also ascertained. Significant changes were also found in other language and cognitive tasks not directly treated (comprehension and constructive apraxia).
a Speech Therapy , AOU Città della Salute e della Scienza (Presidio Molinette) , Turin , Italy.
Barbara
B
De Tommaso
b Psychology Department , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Alessandro
A
Piedimonte
c Neuroscience Department , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Marcella M
MM
Caglio
c Neuroscience Department , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Federico
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9432-0248
F
D'Agata
d Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Marcello
M
Campagnoli
c Neuroscience Department , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Laura
L
Orsi
a Speech Therapy , AOU Città della Salute e della Scienza (Presidio Molinette) , Turin , Italy.
Simona
S
Raimondo
c Neuroscience Department , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Sergio
S
Vighetti
c Neuroscience Department , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Paolo
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8347-5172
P
Mortara
d Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Giuseppe
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1237-5136
G
Massazza
c Neuroscience Department , University of Turin , Turin , Italy.
Lorenzo
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9839-7450
L
Pinessi
D001072:Apraxias / Q000150:complications / Q000534:rehabilitation; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D006801:Humans; D008037:Linguistics; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000502:physiology; D011932:Reading; D013070:Speech Therapy; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D000071939:Stroke Rehabilitation / Q000379:methods*; D065908:Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation; D014956:Writing
Reading and writing rehabilitation; Speech language therapy; Stroke; tDCS