PLORAS (Predicting Language Outcome and Recovery After Stroke) is a research project investigating recovery of speech and language after stroke. The aim is to give future stroke survivors a prediction about their speech and language recovery. The research involves analysing MRI brain scans, and exploring patients’ abilities and experiences after their stroke using formal language assessment and patient reports. This information enables us to identify similarities, and explore the variation between patients, helping us to understand why different people recover in different ways. Almost 1400 stroke survivors have participated in the research so far, providing a rich dataset for us to explore many different facets of language recovery.
Toward more effective, personalised therapies for aphasia
Despite the effort and skill devoted to aphasia rehabilitation, we still know very little about which therapies really work, and why some patients benefit more than others. In this talk, we will demonstrate the enduring benefits of ‘clinically routine’ therapy during the first month post-stroke, and show how therapy benefits might be amplified, by showing that it is possible to predict how individual patients will respond to individual therapies. You can see a written version of this talk here.
