Effects of semantic impairment on language processing in semantic dementia

Jamie Reilly, Jonathan E. Peelle

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

36 Scopus citations

Abstract

Semantic dementia is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive loss of conceptual and lexical knowledge. Cortical atrophy remains relatively isolated to anterior and inferior portions of the temporal lobe early in semantic dementia, later affecting more extensive regions of temporal cortex. Throughout much of the disease course, frontal and parietal lobe structures remain relatively intact. This distribution of cortical damage produces a unique language profile. Patients with semantic dementia typically experience profound deficits in language comprehension and production in the context of relatively well-preserved functioning in domains such as phonology, executive function, Visuospatial processing, and speech perception. We discuss the effects of semantic impairment on language processing in semantic dementia within the context of an interactive theory of semantic cognition that assumes the active coordination of modality-neutral and modality-specific components. Finally, we argue the need for an etiology-specific language intervention for this population.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)32-43
Number of pages12
JournalSeminars in Speech and Language
Volume29
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2008

Keywords

  • Dementia
  • Language
  • Semantic dementia
  • Semantic memory

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