Aphasia is a disease that impedes a person's communication as it “affects the ability to speak, write, and understand verbal and written language,” according to the Mayo Clinic. This is the condition that actor Bruce Willis suffers from and that led him to stop acting, as shared by his family on social media.
While there are no further details about the actor's health, a post on his daughter's Instagram account indicated that he “has been experiencing some health issues” and aphasia “is affecting his cognitive abilities.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, this condition can be caused by a stroke, traumatic brain injury, brain tumor or degenerative disease.
Furthermore, “the severity of aphasia depends on several factors, including the cause and extent of brain damage.”
The disease can also occur suddenly, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD), which is part of the National Institutes of Health in the United States.
“According to the National Aphasia Association, there are currently about one million people in the United States who suffer from aphasia and nearly 180,000 new cases each year. Men and women are equally likely to have aphasia,” according to the NIDCD.
Causes of aphasia
This condition may occur due to brain damage to one or more parts related to language, states the NIDCD. Often, “the cause of the injury” is “a stroke”, which “occurs when a blood clot or rupture of a blood vessel” prevents blood flow “from reaching some part of the brain”, explains the entity.
Other causes could be severe blows to the head, brain tumors, gunshot wounds, brain infections or even “progressive neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.”
Symptoms
According to the Mayo Clinic, the following symptoms are related to aphasia — which itself may be “a sign of some other condition, such as a stroke or brain tumor”:
- Speak short or incomplete sentences;
- Saying meaningless sentences;
- Replacing one word or sound with another;
- Saying unrecognizable or incoherent words;
- Not understanding other people's conversations;
- Writing meaningless sentences.
Treatment
Because aphasia affects the ability to communicate, people with the condition can have “quality of life issues” and affect aspects of life such as “work, relationships, and daily functioning,” according to the Mayo Clinic.
“Language barriers can cause shame, depression and relationship problems,” the health center states.
Due to the changes that occur in the brain, it is possible for the brain to recover and those suffering from aphasia to have “their language and communication abilities back within the first few months, even without treatment,” states the NIDCD. However, it is also possible to undergo rehabilitation with therapies to fully recover communication skills.
“Aphasia therapy aims to improve a person’s ability to communicate by helping them use remaining language skills, regain the ability to speak as much as possible and learn other forms of communication such as gestures, images or the use of devices. electronics,” the NIDCD said.
The Mayo Clinic recommends seeing a doctor when you have difficulty speaking, understanding speech, difficulty remembering words, or difficulty reading or writing.
Source: CNN Brasil

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