Post-stroke aphasia rehabilitation : a review of the history and findings for constraint-induced therapy

Constraint-induced (CI) therapy is an approach adapted from motor rehabilitation to treat language deficits in individuals with poststroke aphasia. The principles of CI therapy were established from behavioral research with animal models that were later applied to human neurorehabilitation. There is a substantial body of evidence to support CI therapy for the treatment of postroke motor deficits; however, evidence for CI aphasia therapy is less established. This report examines the history and current state of evidence for the use of CI-based therapy to treat adults with poststroke aphasia.