TO WHAT EXTENT CAN APHASIC SYNDROMES BE LOCALIZED

Modern views on the representation of function in the cortex make it d ifficult to maintain the notion that specific subtypes of aphasia are associated with specific centres within the language area. We have con ducted a retrospective study on 221 aphasic patients with one contiguo us vascular lesion in the territory of the middle cerebral artery. The localization of CT lesions was established within a standardized grid model. Aphasiological data were based on one or more examinations wit h the Aachen Aphasia Test. Both sets of data were processed in a data- and methodbase system. No unequivocal association between type of aph asia and localization of lesion was found. In a smaller study, partici pation of basal ganglia and in particular of the head of the caudate n ucleus in lesions producing aphasia was not confirmed. Concepts of the localization of a lesion in aphasia must account for changes in patte rns of aphasic symptoms in the presence of a stable lesion and for the impact of the neurological condition that has produced the lesion.