Patients with conduction aphasia typically have difficulty with which task?

• A. Difficulty Repeating Words
• B. Understanding Speech
• C. Producing Fluent Speech
• D. Naming Objects

Answer: (A)

Repetition difficulties are the hallmark here because the brain pathways that translate heard language into spoken language are disrupted. Conduction aphasia results from damage to the arcuate fasciculus, the fiber tract connecting Wernicke’s area (comprehension) with Broca’s area (speech production). With this disconnection, a person can understand what they hear and can speak fluently, but when asked to repeat words or phrases, the conversion of auditory information into accurate motor plans for articulation breaks down. You’ll often see fluent speech with intact vocabulary and grammar, some phonemic paraphasias, and good comprehension, yet repeating spoken language is disproportionately impaired. Naming objects and understanding speech generally remain relatively preserved, and the ability to produce fluent speech is not the primary deficit in this pattern.