Exam 4, Lec 2; Flashcards: Speech and Language

Where is language lateralized and localized?

Left frontal and temporal association cortices

Role of the right hemisphere

Prosody

Prosody

"coloring" of speech
- Includes rhythm, timing, emphasis, volume, tonal (pitch) variations of of verbal speech

What does coloring of speech do?

Conveys emotion and grammatical emphasis

Aphasia

Disorder that impairs a persons ability to process language but does not affect intelligence

Most common cause of aphasia

Stroke but can also be caused by head injury, brain tumor, and other neurological cases

Brocas area

Speech production

Where is Brocas Area located?

left frontal lobe

Brocas aphasia

- Motor, "expressive" aphasia

Effects of Brocas aphasia

- Disruption of language production (finding/expressing the right words) and organization (grammar, syntax)
- Problems apparent with written, spoken, "signed" language
- Patients cannot produce speech, but CAN understand speech

Are patients with Brocas aphasia aware of their problem?

Yes, they are acutely aware of their problem

Wernickes area

Language comprehension

Where is Wernickes area located?

Rear left temporal lobe

Wernickes aphasia

- Sensory/receptive aphasia

Effects of wernickes aphasia

- Language produced, sounds normal, but much of it makes no sense

Do patients with Wernickes aphasia know about their condition?

No, many patients seem to be completely unaware of their problem

Conduction aphasia

Damage to fibers linking Wernickes and Brocas area

Name of fibers linking Wernickes and Brocas area

Arcuate fasciculus

Effects of conduction aphasia

- Patients have problems producing appropriate responses to language even though language is understood
- Characterized by poor speech repetition
- Patients seem to lose their train of thought - due to lack of communication between Wernicke's area (sound/meaning) and Broca's area (motor commands)

Pathway of speech

Thought --> Wernicke's area --> Brocas area --> Facial area of motor cortex --> Cranial nerves --> Speech

Split-Brain Subjects

Corpus callosum severed to help reduce epileptic seizures in small number of patients

Effects of split-brain subjects in speech

Since language functions are primarily located in left hemisphere, the left brain should be more "conscious" than the right

Is the optic chiasm split in split-brain subjects?

No, just the corpus callosum