The hero of the film Armageddon suffers from a very disabling language disorder.
- In France, aphasia affects more than 300,000 people.
- 30,000 new cases are recorded each year.
He is one of the biggest Hollywood stars to retire from film sets. At 67, Bruce Willis has put an end to his exceptional film career for health reasons. He indeed suffers from aphasia, as explained by his daughter Rumer Willis and his ex-wife Demi Moore on social networks.
Distortion of words
Aphasia is a communication disorder that can manifest itself in oral or written expression and/or comprehension. “Oral language, reading, writing and gestures can be disturbed.” explains the CHUV.
The affected person may, for example, frequently use one word for another (“watch” for “glasses”) and/or an opposite (“hot” for “cold”). It can also distort words partially (“pite” for “pipe”) or completely (“il glie” for “he plays”). The production of sentences can also become telegraphic, the patient being able for example to say: “me leaving Friday”.
Lesion of specific language areas
Aphasia is caused by damage to specific areas of language, which are located in the brain. “Anyone with brain damage, with some language acquisition, can become aphasic (not to be confused with developmental language disorders, called ‘dysphasias’)”, details the CHUV.
The origin of the lesion can be diverse (we do not know that it is that of Bruce Willis, editor’s note): infarction, rupture of aneurysm, injury, tumor. Recovery varies depending on various factors, the main ones being the extent of the injury, the patient’s age, the cause of the brain injury, the presence or absence of associated disorders, the motivation of the patient and the treatment (speech therapy and/or any other complementary measure).
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