Escitalopram and Language Intervention for Subacute Aphasia

Launched by JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · Feb 14, 2019

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial is studying how a medication called escitalopram, which is usually used to treat depression, can help improve language therapy for people who have had a stroke and are experiencing aphasia. Aphasia is a condition that affects a person’s ability to speak or understand language. The researchers want to see if taking escitalopram while participating in language therapy can help these individuals better name and describe pictures, thereby enhancing their communication skills during the crucial early stages after a stroke.

To be eligible for the study, participants must be at least 18 years old and have had a specific type of stroke that affects the left side of the brain. They should also be fluent in English and able to give consent for themselves or have someone authorized to consent for them. The study is open to all genders and is currently looking for new participants. Those who join can expect to receive language therapy along with the medication while being closely monitored for their progress and any side effects. It’s important to note that certain medical conditions or medications may prevent someone from participating, so a thorough screening will be conducted before enrollment.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Participants must have sustained an acute ischemic left hemisphere stroke.
• • Participants must be fluent speakers of English by self-report.
• • Participants must be capable of giving informed consent or indicating a legally authorized representative to provide informed consent.
• • Participants must be age 18 or older.
• • Participants must be within 5 days of onset of stroke.
• • Participants must be pre-morbidly right-handed by self-report.
• • Participants must have an aphasia diagnosis as confirmed by the Western Aphasia Battery-Revised (Aphasia Quotient \< 93.8).
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • Previous neurological disease affecting the brain including previous symptomatic stroke
• • Diagnosis of schizophrenia, autism, or other psychiatric or neurological condition that affects naming/language
• • A history of additional risk factors for torsades de pointes (TdP; e.g., heart failure, hypokalemia, family history of Long QT Syndrome)
• • Current severe depression, defined as a score of \> 15 on the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9)
• • Uncorrected visual loss or hearing loss by self-report
• • Use of any medication approved by the FDA for treatment of depression at the time of stroke onset
• • Concomitant use of any monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) or pimozide, or other drugs that prolong the QT/QTc interval, triptans (and other 5-Hydroxytryptamine Receptor Agonists), or other contraindications to escitalopram that may be identified.
• • A QTc greater than 450 milliseconds on electrocardiogram or evidence of hyponatremia (Na \< 130) at baseline
• • Pregnancy at the time of stroke or planning to become pregnant during the study term.