| 1. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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Disfluencies in spontaneous speech in persons with low-grade glioma before and after surgery
- 2024
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Ingår i: Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics. - 0269-9206. ; 38:4, s. 359-380, s. 1-22
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Impaired lexical retrieval is common in persons with low-grade glioma (LGG). Several studies have reported a discrepancy between subjective word-finding difficulties and results on formal tests. Analysis of spontaneous speech might be more sensitive to signs of word-finding difficulties, hence we aimed to explore disfluencies in a spontaneous-speech task performed by participants with presumed LGG before and after surgery. Further, we wanted to explore how the presence of disfluencies in spontaneous speech differed in the participants with and without objectively established lexical-retrieval impairment and with and without self-reported subjective experience of impaired language, speech and communication. Speech samples of 26 persons with presumed low-grade glioma were analysed with regard to disfluency features. The post-operative speech samples had a higher occurrence of fillers, implying more disfluent language production. The participants performed worse on two of the word fluency tests, and after surgery the number of participants who were assessed as having an impaired lexical retrieval had increased from 6 to 12. The number of participants who experienced a change in their language, speech or communication had increased from 9 to 12. Additional comparisons showed that those with impaired lexical retrieval had a higher proportion of false starts after surgery than those with normal lexical retrieval, and differences in articulation rate and speech rate, favouring those not having experienced any change in language, speech or communication. Taken together, the findings from this study strengthen the existing claim that temporal aspects of language and speech are important when assessing persons with gliomas.
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| 2. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of expiratory muscle strength training on voice and speech: An exploratory study in persons with Parkinson’s disease or multiple sclerosis
- 2023
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Ingår i: International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. - 1754-9507 .- 1754-9515.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: This study explored how respiration, voice, and speech were affected following expiratory muscle strength training (EMST) and maintenance training in persons with Parkinson’s disease (PD) or multiple sclerosis (MS). Method: Nine participants with PD and six with MS participated in a randomised study, where the effects of EMST, sham, and maintenance treatment were investigated. Outcome measures included maximum expiratory pressure (MEP); maximum phonation time (MPT); intelligibility; verbal diadochokinesis (DDK); speech rate; a self-report form on voice, speech, and communication; and open questions about how the participants experienced the intervention. Group comparisons were performed within and between groups. Result: The PD and the MS groups both improved significantly in MEP, and this improvement remained after 3 months of maintenance EMST. An improvement was also seen in DDK. Post-EMST, 33% of the PD group and 80% of the MS group reported a positive effect on communication. Conclusion: The results of this study support previous evidence that EMST has positive effects on expiratory pressure in persons with PD or MS, but its effect on voice and speech remains unclear. Since subjective reports of the intervention and effects on communication were predominantly positive, further research is needed on larger groups to explore appropriate outcome measures.
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| 3. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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High-level language ability in healthy individuals and its relationship with verbal working memory
- 2016
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Ingår i: Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics. - : Informa UK Limited. - 0269-9206 .- 1464-5076. ; 30:12, s. 944-958
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aims of the study were to investigate healthy subjects' performance on a clinical test of high-level language (HLL) and how it is related to demographic characteristics and verbal working memory (VWM). One hundred healthy subjects (20-79 years old) were assessed with the Swedish BeSS test (Laakso, Brunnegard, Hartelius, & Ahlsen, 2000) and two digit span tasks. Relationships between the demographic variables, VWM and BeSS were investigated both with bivariate correlations and multiple regression analysis. The results present the norms for BeSS. The correlations and multiple regression analysis show that demographic variables had limited influence on test performance. Measures of VWM were moderately related to total BeSS score and weakly to moderately correlated with five of the seven subtests. To conclude, education has an influence on the test as a whole but measures of VWM stood out as the most robust predictor of HLL.
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| 4. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986
(författare)
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Language ability in patients with low-grade glioma - detecting signs of subtle dysfunction
- 2017
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background: Low-grade glioma (LGG) is a slow-growing brain tumour often situated in or near areas involved in language and/or cognitive functions. Consequently, there is a risk that patients develop language impairments due to tumour growth or surgical resection. Purposes: The main aim of this thesis was to investigate language ability in patients with LGG in relation to surgical treatment. Language ability was investigated using various sensitive methods such as a test of high-level language. To acquire norms for the test used to investigate high-level language, normative values were obtained in a methodological study (Study I). Methods: In Study I, 100 adults were assessed using a Swedish test of high-level language (BeSS) and a test of verbal working memory. Relationships between these tests and demographic variables were investigated. In Study II, the language ability of 23 newly diagnosed LGG patients was assessed and compared with that of a reference group. The patients were also asked about self-perceived changes in language. In Study III, the language ability of 32 LGG patients was assessed before surgery, early after surgery and at three-months follow-up. The patients’ language ability was compared across these assessment points and with a reference group. Finally, in Study IV, 20 LGG patients wrote a short narrative before and after surgery. The aim was to explore whether the lexical-retrieval difficulties previously seen in oral language could be seen in writing as well. Keystroke logging was used to explore writing fluency and word-level pauses. Here, too, comparisons were made between the assessment points and with a reference group. Results and conclusions: Study I showed that demographic variables had a limited impact on performance on the BeSS whereas verbal working memory influenced performance. Hence verbal working memory was found to influence performance on a test of high-level language. In Study II, the LGG group performed worse than the reference group on tests of lexical retrieval. However, the majority of the newly diagnosed patients with presumed LGG had normal or nearly normal language ability prior to surgery. Only a few patients reported a change in their language ability. In Study III, most patients with a tumour in the left hemisphere manifested language impairment shortly after surgery, but the majority of them had returned to their pre-operative level of performance three months after surgery. Language impairment in patients with a tumour in the right hemisphere was rare at all assessment points. In Study IV, LGG patients had a higher proportion of pauses within words before surgery than the reference group did. After surgery, the patients’ production rate decreased and the proportion of pauses before words increased. Measures of lexical retrieval showed moderate to strong relationships with writing fluency both before and after surgery. The higher frequency of word-level pauses could indicate a lexical deficit. Overall, lexical-retrieval deficits were the most common type of impairment found both before and after surgery in patients with presumed LGG.
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| 5. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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Narrative writing in patients with low-grade glioma - using keystroke logging to investigate differences in the writing process before and after tumour resection
- 2017
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Ingår i: Meaningful outcomes Nordic Aphasia Conference. Copenhagen, 15 -17 June 2017.
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The aim of this study was to investigate the writing process, using a keystroke logging program, in narratives written by patients with LGG and to compare the patients’ writing processes and products three months after tumour resection with their pre-operative performance. Twenty consecutive patients scheduled for tumour resection at Sahlgrenska University Hospital wrote to a picture-elicited narrative before and at three months follow-up using the keystroke logging program, ScriptLog (Frid, J., Johansson, V., Johansson, R., Wengelin, Å., & Johansson, M., 2014). After surgery there was a significant decline in production rate, i.e. words produced per minute. An analysis of pause distribution in different micro contexts revealed a significant increase of pauses before initiating the typing of a word. The decline in production rate suggests an increase in cognitive effort in narrative writing for patients who have undergone surgical treatment for LGG. The analysis of pause distribution indicates lexical retrieval difficulties. Investigation of the writing process can give information about subtle changes in language and cognitive processing for patients undergoing tumour resection.
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| 6. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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Post-surgical effects on language in patients with presumed low-grade glioma
- 2018
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Ingår i: Acta Neurologica Scandinavica. - : Hindawi Limited. - 0001-6314. ; 137:5, s. 469-480
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objectives: Low-grade glioma (LGG) is a slow-growing brain tumour often situated in or near areas involved in language and/or cognitive functions. Thus, language impairments due to tumour growth or surgical resection are obvious risks. We aimed to investigate language outcome following surgery in patients with presumed LGG, using a comprehensive and sensitive language assessment. Materials and methods: Thirty-two consecutive patients with presumed LGG were assessed preoperative, early post-operative, and 3 months post-operative using sensitive tests including lexical retrieval, language comprehension and high-level language. The patients’ preoperative language ability was compared with a reference group, but also with performance at post-operative controls. Further, the association between tumour location and language performance pre-and post-operatively was explored. Results: Before surgery, the patients with presumed LGG performed worse on tests of lexical retrieval when compared to a reference group (BNT: LGG-group median 52, Reference-group median 54, P = .002; Animals: LGG-group mean 21.0, Reference-group mean 25, P = 001; Verbs: LGG-group mean 17.3, Reference-group mean 21.4, P = .001). At early post-operative assessment, we observed a decline in all language tests, whereas at 3 months there was only a decline on a single test of lexical retrieval (Animals: preoperative. median 20, post-op median 14, P = .001). The highest proportion of language impairment was found in the group with a tumour in language-eloquent areas at all time-points. Conclusions: Although many patients with a tumour in the left hemisphere deteriorated in their language function directly after surgery, their prognosis for recovery was good.
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| 7. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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Pre-operative language ability in patients with presumed low-grade glioma
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of Neuro-Oncology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0167-594X .- 1573-7373. ; 137:1, s. 93-102
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In patients with low-grade glioma (LGG), language deficits are usually only found and investigated after surgery. Deficits may be present before surgery but to date, studies have yielded varying results regarding the extent of this problem and in what language domains deficits may occur. This study therefore aims to explore the language ability of patients who have recently received a presumptive diagnosis of low-grade glioma, and also to see whether they reported any changes in their language ability before receiving treatment. Twenty-three patients were tested using a comprehensive test battery that consisted of standard aphasia tests and tests of lexical retrieval and high-level language functions. The patients were also asked whether they had noticed any change in their use of language or ability to communicate. The test scores were compared to a matched reference group and to clinical norms. The presumed LGG group performed significantly worse than the reference group on two tests of lexical retrieval. Since five patients after surgery were discovered to have a high-grade glioma, a separate analysis excluding them were performed. These analyses revealed comparable results; however one test of word fluency was no longer significant. Individually, the majority exhibited normal or nearly normal language ability and only a few reported subjective changes in language or ability to communicate. This study shows that patients who have been diagnosed with LGG generally show mild or no language deficits on either objective or subjective assessment.
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| 8. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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Using a Discourse Task to Explore Semantic Ability in Persons With Cognitive Impairment.
- 2021
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Ingår i: Frontiers in aging neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365. ; 12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper uses a discourse task to explore aspects of semantic production in persons with various degree of cognitive impairment and healthy controls. The purpose of the study was to test if an in-depth semantic analysis of a cognitive-linguistic challenging discourse task could differentiate persons with a cognitive decline from those with a stable cognitive impairment. Both quantitative measures of semantic ability, using tests of oral lexical retrieval, and qualitative analysis of a narrative were used to detect semantic difficulties. Besides group comparisons a classification experiment was performed to investigate if the discourse features could be used to improve classification of the participants who had a stable cognitive impairment from those who had cognitively declined. In sum, both types of assessment methods captured difficulties between the groups, but tests of oral lexical retrieval most successfully differentiated between the cognitively stable and the cognitively declined group. Discourse features improved classification accuracy and the best combination of features discriminated between participants with a stable cognitive impairment and those who had cognitively declined with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.93.
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| 9. |
- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(författare)
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Writing fluency in patients with low-grade glioma before and after surgery
- 2018
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Ingår i: International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders. - : Wiley. - 1368-2822 .- 1460-6984. ; 53:3, s. 592-604
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- © 2018 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists. Background: Low-grade glioma (LGG) is a type of brain tumour often situated in or near areas involved in language, sensory or motor functions. Depending on localization and tumour characteristics, language or cognitive impairments due to tumour growth and/or surgical resection are obvious risks. One task that may be at risk is writing, both because it requires intact language and memory function and because it is a very complex and cognitively demanding task. The most commonly reported language deficit in LGG patients is oral lexical-retrieval difficulties, and poor lexical retrieval would be expected to affect writing fluency. Aims: To explore whether writing fluency is affected in LGG patients before and after surgery and whether it is related to performance on tasks of oral lexical retrieval. Methods & Procedures: Twenty consecutive patients with presumed LGG wrote a narrative and performed a copy task before undergoing surgery and at 3-month follow-up using keystroke-logging software. The same tasks were performed by a reference group (N = 31). The patients were also tested using the Boston Naming Test (BNT) and word-fluency tests before and after surgery. Writing fluency was compared between the patients and the reference group, and between the patients before and after surgery. Relationships between performance on tests of oral lexical retrieval and writing fluency were investigated both before and after surgery. Outcome & Results: Different aspects of writing fluency were affected in the LGG patients both before and after surgery. However, when controlling for the effect of typing speed, the LGG group differed significantly from the reference group only in the proportion of pauses within words. After surgery, a significant decline was seen in production rate and typing speed in the narrative task, and a significant increase was seen in pauses before words. Strong positive relationships were found between oral lexical retrieval and writing fluency both before and after surgery. Conclusions & Implications: Although aspects of writing fluency were affected both before and after surgery, the results indicate that typing speed is an important factor behind the pre-surgery differences. However, the decline in overall productivity and the increase in pauses before words after surgery could be related to a lexical deficit. This is supported by the finding that oral lexical-retrieval scores were strongly correlated with writing fluency. However, further exploration is needed to identify the language and cognitive abilities affecting writing processes in LGG patients.
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| 10. |
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