THE DOCTOR IS IN
OP-ED BY DR. ADIL MANZOOR
If you are a fan of the big screens, it may not be news to you that the legendary actor, Bruce Willis, has called it quits on his 37-year acting career. For the non-movie fans, Bruce Willis is the man on the cover of Die Hard – that has to ring a bell, at least! The reason cited for his retirement is a condition called aphasia. So, what exactly is it?
Aphasia is a disorder that affects a person’s ability to communicate. It’s just as it sounds, really. It affects the ability to construct coherent sentences. Reading and writing abilities are also impaired. This isn’t ideal for anyone, but especially for an actor, because the whole point of acting is communicating and connecting with viewers. Anyone can have aphasia, but it is more common among older people. For context, Bruce Willis is 67 years old.
This disorder is actually one of the most underrated in the industry. What do we mean? According to the National Aphasia Association, aphasia affects about two million people in the United States. It is even more common than Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, and muscular dystrophy.
The condition is unsurprisingly caused by damage or injury to the brain. The most common cause is stroke. The National Aphasia Association states that about 25% to 40% of people who survive a stroke eventually have aphasia. The reason isn’t far-fetched too.
A stroke is a medical emergency that occurs when blood flow to a part of the brain is cut off, preventing the brain cells in that region from getting oxygen, which eventually leads to their death. As you would expect, with aphasia, the region getting cut off from oxygen supply is the region that controls language.
Aside from the stroke, there are other possible reasons a person may have aphasia. They include head trauma or injury, brain tumor, and infection. Aphasia may also accompany other mental conditions, like dementia.
Although the broad marker of aphasia is a communication disorder, its specific symptoms are difficulty speaking, speaking in short or incomplete sentences, speaking sentences that don’t make much sense, difficulty reading and writing sentences, and using unfamiliar words when speaking.
It is worth noting that aphasia may be mild or severe. For the former, the person can hold full simple conversations but will find it very challenging. However, it may be impossible to converse in complex discussions. For severe aphasia, the person may not be able or even slightly willing to participate in any form of conversation.
Interestingly, while the person’s communication skills are impaired, theirs is no evidence that their intelligence is. This essentially means they can still think the way they used to, but expressing their thoughts with words is the problem.
For people with aphasia, there’s good news – it is treatable. The default treatment therapy is speech and language therapy. Here, the affected individual meets with a therapist that helps them with their communication skills. This includes verbal and non-verbal communication. It is not uncommon for this kind of therapy to be done with other people, like a support group.
There are medications that have been tried, but there is no single medication ascribed to curing the condition. The medications usually used function to improve blood flow to the affected part of the brain. Typically, when the root cause is treated and there’s proper management of the condition, aphasia resolves, allowing the person can start communicating as normal.
A word of caution – aphasia is a degenerative condition, which is a term for a condition that gradually worsens over time. As such, detecting signs of the condition early and getting appropriate treatment is crucial.
This article was written by Dr. Adil Manzoor DO, a Board Certified Internist & Board Eligible Pediatrician, who works as a Hospitalist, and Emergency Room Physician. He is also the current President of Garden State Street Medicine, a non-profit organization whose sole purpose is to provide free preventive and acute urgent care services for the homeless. He is also the co-founder of his own unique medical practice Mobile Medicine NJ.
References
- https://www.aphasia.org/aphasia-faqs/
- https://www.npr.org/2022/03/31/1089806228/what-is-aphasia-explained
- https://www.webmd.com/brain/aphasia-causes-symptoms-types-treatments
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/aphasia/symptoms-causes/syc-20369518
