Language therapy of aphasia supported by augmented reality applications

Abstract

In Europe there are more than 580 000 people who suffer from aphasia - an acquired speech and language disorder that occurs because of brain damage, primarily as a result of a stroke. Especially with regards to demographic change, health care systems have to face present and future challenges to improve aphasia therapy. Thereby, immediate therapeutic measures are decisive for best possible and long-term success in language therapy. Regarding essential requirements, on the one hand, therapy intensity and frequency have to be increased significantly while on the other hand, measures need to be adjusted along everyday activities. A very promising approach to meet this requirements are augmented reality applications. They can be used to create a highly natural exercise situation, in which patients interact and practice with their personal possessions at home. This facilitates the successful and continuous transfer of learnings for the patient, contrary to being solely dependent on clinical therapy units. This paper gives an overview of the concept of a real-time software providing augmented and dynamic language therapy, which is interactive and utilizes simple user interface design, for home-based training.