Neuroplasticity in post-stroke aphasia : the effectiveness of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation

The aim of this thesis is to improve our understanding of neuroplasticity in post-stroke aphasia, and explore whether we can facilitate this in order to optimize aphasia treatment.
The primary aim is to investigate the effectiveness of Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) in combination with Speech and Language Therapy in post-stroke sub-acute aphasia. We set up a randomized-controlled trial to investigate the effect of tDCS in facilitating adaptive neuroplasticity in sub-acute aphasia. In addition, the effectiveness of different tDCS electrode configurations is evaluated, namely tDCS over the left inferior frontal gyrus, the left superior temporal gyrus and the right cerebellum. Finally, to study inter-individual variability in neuroplasticity processes, we used 1) Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor genotype information to compare aphasia treatment outcome between people with different Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor genotypes and 2) neuroimaging data to evaluate individual brain activation maps, segregating areas contributing to either correct naming or naming errors.