RESUMEN

Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) is a neurological syndrome characterized by impaired language due to neurodegeneration. It is subdivided into three variants: semantic, agrammatic or nonfluent, and logopenic. Pieces of evidence have suggested that learning disabilities in childhood, such as dyslexia, might be susceptibility factors in the occurrence of PPA in adulthood. The objective of this study was to verify the existence of the relationship between PPA and the history of learning disabilities of patients and their children, compared to a control group of individuals with Alzheimer's disease (AD). A questionnaire was applied to investigate the presence of indicators of learning disabilities and difficulties in individuals with PPA and AD and their children. Twenty subjects with PPA and 16 with AD participated in the study. Our findings are presented and discussed in light of the current scientific evidence and the social, educational, and economic Brazilian scenario. Despite the challenges of doing research with individuals with PPA in Brazil, we present the first evidence about the investigation of association between the history of learning disabilities and difficulties and PPA in native Brazilian Portuguese speakers.

RESUMEN

Background: Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA) is characterized by progressive language impairment due to focal degeneration of brain areas related to linguistic processing. The detection and differential diagnosis of PPA can be difficult with clinical features that may overlap with features of other neurological conditions, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). The scientific production on PPA in Latin American patients is still scarce. This study investigated the first symptoms in a Brazilian sample of patients with PPA in comparison with AD patients. Method: We compared the first symptoms reported by caregivers of people with PPA (n = 20; semantic variant n = 8, non-fluent variant n = 7, logopenic variant n = 3, and unclassified cases n = 2) and AD (n = 16). Data were collected through the application of a structured questionnaire that was presented in an interview format to the caregiver who knew the patient best. Results: Anomia, paraphasias and motor speech difficulties were the first symptoms capable of differentiating patients with PPA from those with AD, while memory was exclusive of AD. Among the PPA variants, anomia was the initial symptom associated with the semantic variant, while motor speech difficulties were associated with the non-fluent variant. The results are discussed considering the unique cultural and sociodemographic characteristics of this studied population. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that some of the initial symptoms of PPA patients may be unique to clinical variants of PPA and of AD, and their investigation may be useful for the early and differential diagnosis of this population.

RESUMEN

O transtorno do processamento auditivo central em escolares pode gerar inúmeros prejuízos em habilidades necessárias à aprendizagem escolar. É de grande importância que o professor seja esclarecido acerca das características das alterações nessas áreas e suas consequências no processo de ensino-aprendizagem. Sendo assim, o objetivo desta pesquisa foi verificar o conhecimento de professores sobre a relação entre processamento auditivo central e aprendizagem escolar, pré e pós-oficina de orientações fonoaudiológicas. Participaram da pesquisa 20 professores de 1º a 5º ano do ensino fundamental de 2 escolas, uma da rede pública e outra da rede privada do município de Caxias do Sul, que responderam a um questionário sobre a relação entre o processamento auditivo central e a aprendizagem escolar. Após, foi realizada uma oficina de orientações fonoaudiológicas com os participantes, e, em seguida, reaplicado o questionário para avalição da eficácia da intervenção. Os resultados indicaram melhora estatisticamente significante no conhecimento dos professores após a intervenção, porém, não houve diferença nos resultados na comparação entre os dois tipos de escola (pública e privada). Dessa forma, fica comprovada a eficácia deste tipo de abordagem e ressalta-se a importância do trabalho em conjunto do fonoaudiólogo com a escola, a fim de levar maiores esclarecimentos aos profissionais e buscar-se mais benefícios para o aluno.

The auditory processing disorder in students might generates countless losses on needful skills for adequate school learning. It is very important that the teacher be clarified about the characteristics of the changes in these areas and their consequences in the teaching-learning process. Therefore, the objective of this survey was to verify the knowledge of teachers about the relation between central auditory processing and school learning, before and after workshop of Speech therapist orientations. Twenty teachers from 1st to 5th grade of elementary school from two schools, one from the public network and the other from the private network of the city of Caxias do Sul, participated in the survey, which answered a questionnaire about the relation between central auditory processing and school learning. Afterwards, a Speech therapist counseling workshop was held with the participants, and then the questionnaire was reapplied to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention. The results indicated a statistically significant improvement in the teachers' knowledge after the intervention, however, there was no difference in the results between the two types of school (public and private). In this way, the efficacy of this type of survey is proved, and the matter of the work of the Speech therapist with the school is emphasized, in order to bring greater clarification to the professionals and to seek more benefits for the student.