# Challenges in Assessing Aphasia in Congenital Blind Patients: A Case Report

## TL;DR

This case report explores the challenges of assessing aphasia in a congenitally blind patient and highlights the need for adapted tools and collaborative approaches.

## Contribution

The paper introduces a tailored assessment method for aphasia in congenitally blind individuals using Braille and family involvement.

## Key findings

- The patient showed strengths in articulation, prosody, and repetition but struggled with semantic and syntactic structures.
- Assessment of naming and comprehension was limited due to accessibility challenges.
- The study emphasizes the need for flexible, patient-specific tools and further research in this area.

## Abstract

This case report focuses on assessing aphasia in a congenitally blind patient with an ischemic lesion using the Aachener Aphasia Test. The method involved adapting existing assessment tools to the patient, integrating Braille as an accessible technology, and incorporating the patient’s family for emotional support and for the identification of patient-specific communication strategies. The assessment revealed patient strengths in areas such as articulation, prosody, and repetition skills, but also exposed challenges in semantic and syntactic structures. However, the unavailability to assess and score naming and comprehension limited a full assessment of the patient’s language abilities. The findings underscore the need for flexible, tailored assessment strategies and collaborative approaches involving healthcare professionals and families. Moreover, it suggests a considerable research gap and a need for standard tools to assess blind patients with aphasia comprehensively. This case report contributes to the limited knowledge of assessing aphasia in blind individuals and calls for further research in this area to refine and expand the available tools and strategies.