A Novel Intervention to Address Psychosocial Needs of People with Aphasia: Preliminary Outcomes

Research Objectives: To examine feasibility and preliminary data of a novel, cognitive-behaviorally informed intervention to address psychosocial needs of people with post-stroke aphasia

Design: Before-and-after intervention trial

Setting: Ambulatory university research center

Participants: A convenience sample of seven participants (2 female, 5 male) with post-stroke aphasia secondary to left-hemisphere stroke participated in this pilot trial to date (mean age = 56.6 years). Participants were excluded if they had severe auditory comprehension deficits or a history of neurological disorders in addition to stroke. Data collection is ongoing.

Interventions: A one-on-one behavioral intervention (five sessions, one hour each) was collaboratively designed by a speech-language pathologist (SLP) and clinical psychologist and administered to all participants by an SLP. Intervention components included: psychoeducation, sleep hygiene education, relaxation training, and behavioral activation.

Main Outcome Measures: feasibility, acceptability, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Screen (HADS; Zigmond & Snaith, 1983).

Results: Mean HADS anxiety scores decreased from 7.29 to 6.00 from pre-post intervention and mean HADS depression scores decreased from 9.00 to 5.67 (lower scores indicate fewer symptoms). Paired-samples t-tests showed a significant reduction in depression symptoms from pre-post intervention, t(5) = 2.74, p = .041, but not anxiety symptoms (p = .896). 100% of those who started, completed treatment. 100% of participants recommended the intervention to other people with aphasia at post-intervention.

Conclusions: Early evidence from this small sample suggests that the intervention is feasible, acceptable, and reaches individuals with psychosocial impairment who would not otherwise be seeking mental health services. Pilot findings suggest that, on average, participants demonstrated improvements in psychosocial functioning after completing the intervention. Additional evidence is required before use in clinical settings.

Author(s) Disclosures: None