10th International Conference on Frontotemporal Dementias

Thursday, 1st September 2016, 15:30 - 18:30

Klinikum rechts der Isar (University Hospital), Technical University of Munich
Ismaninger Str. 22
81675 Munich
Lecture Hall Pavillion
The University Hospital is located a 10 minute walk away from the ICFTD conference site Hotel Holiday Inn.

English. A translation into German will not be provided

4 CME credit points/ 4 Fortbildungspunkte gemäß Anlage 2 vom 01.07.2013 zu den Rahmenempfehlungen nach §125 Abs. 1 SGB V in der Fassung vom 01.07.2013

Attendants of the ICFTD 2016 or the International FTD Caregiver Conference need an additional registration for the PPA workshop.

The frontotemporal dementias often present with progressive aphasia, which is a gradual loss of the ability to understand and/or produce spoken and/or written language.  Progressive aphasia (also known as Primary Progressive Aphasia, or PPA) has a profound effect on the person's ability to communicate, which in turn affects their relationships, social networks and ability to participate in everyday activities. It also impacts their close others. The management of the language and communication difficulties in PPA is an emerging area of practice in speech pathology and related health care professions.

This workshop will present a framework for the holistic care of people with progressive aphasia, focussing on the language and communication difficulties experienced in the nonfluent, semantic and logopenic variants of PPA (including semantic dementia), with practical guidelines for assessment and intervention.

The workshop will consider: a philosophy of progressive aphasia management - initial assessment and the speech pathologist’s contribution to differential diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia, therapeutic interventions involving the person with progressive aphasia and/or their carer, and referral to additional agencies/health care services.  Case examples will be used to illustrate aspects of management across different clinical presentations at different stages of progression, and handouts will be provided summarising the key material covered.

At the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:

• Describe the diagnostic features of the major clinical variants of primary progressive aphasia
• Plan an assessment of key communication areas at different stages of disease progression
• Develop a management plan in collaboration with the person with progressive aphasia and close other(s), and adapt this plan over the course of the disease
• Select interventions to remediate impairments and facilitate communication-related activities and participation in progressive aphasia
• Identify and access resources to support language and communication assessment and intervention in progressive aphasia

The workshop is designed for health care professionals who work with people who have PPA associated with frontotemporal dementia.  The focus will be on optimising language and communication across the course of the disease, so it is particularly suited to professionals working in the fields of speech pathology/speech-language therapy /neurolinguistics /patholinguistics /Logopädie, as well as other interested professionals and students in the fields of medicine, psychology, neuropsychology, occupational therapy, social work, physiotherapy etc.

Some basic knowledge of PPA will be assumed, so prior reading of the following article is recommended (available for download at Google Scholar):

Gorno-Tempini, M. L., Hillis, A. E., Weintraub, S., Kertesz, A., Mendez, M., Cappa, S. E. E. A., ... & Manes, F. (2011). Classification of primary progressive aphasia and its variants. Neurology, 76(11), 1006-1014.

Dr Karen Croot is a Senior Lecturer in Applied Cognitive Psychology at The University of Sydney, Australia, who has been researching progressive aphasia for over 20 years.  She has written peer-reviewed journal articles and presented at international conferences on the diagnosis and clinical management of progressive aphasia, and co-edited two books on speech and language interventions for progressive aphasia.

Cathleen Taylor is a Certified Practising Speech Pathologist with 30 years experience working with adults with aphasia, including more than 10 years experience specialising in progressive aphasia.  She has published peer reviewed articles on progressive aphasia, has a research masters degree on conversation difficulties in progressive aphasia, and is currently undertaking her PhD on interventions to support conversation in progressive aphasia.  Cathleen is the Director of the newly-established Primary Progressive Aphasia and Related Disorders Clinic at War Memorial Hospital in Sydney, Australia.