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Causes

By Mayo Clinic staff

The most common cause of aphasia is brain damage resulting from a stroke — the blockage or rupture of a blood vessel in the brain. This disruption of the blood supply leads to brain cell death or damage in areas of the brain controlling language. Brain damage caused by a severe head injury, a tumor, an infection or a degenerative process can also cause aphasia.

Primary progressive aphasia is the term used for language difficulty that develops gradually. This is due to the gradual degeneration of brain cells located in the language networks. Sometimes this type of aphasia will progress to a more generalized dementia.

References
  1. Aphasia. National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/voice/aphasia.htm. Accessed Jan. 18, 2010.
  2. Aphasia: Benefits of speech-language pathology services. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/AphasiaSLPBenefits.htm. Accessed Jan. 19, 2010.
  3. Aphasia. American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/Aphasia.htm. Accessed Jan. 18, 2010.
  4. Aphasia. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/print/sec16/ch210/ch210d.html. Accessed Jan. 18, 2010.
  5. Mesulam MM. Aphasia, memory loss, and other focal cerebral disorders. In: Fauci AS, et al. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine. 17th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Medical; 2007. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2886863. Accessed Jan. 18, 2010.
  6. Clark DG. Aphasia: Prognosis and treatment. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Jan. 18, 2010.
  7. NINDS aphasia information page. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/aphasia/aphasia.htm. Accessed Jan. 18, 2010.
  8. Tips for socializing with aphasia. American Stroke Association. http://www.strokeassociation.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3030118. Accessed Jan. 19, 2010.
  9. Edythe Strand, Ph.D. (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Feb. 1, 2010.
DS00685 March 6, 2010

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