High scores on the Western Aphasia Battery correlate with good functional communication skills (as measured with the Communicative Effectiveness Index) in aphasic stroke patients.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the correlation between an impairment-level and a functional-level assessment scale of aphasia.

DESIGN: Prospective, longitudinal study.

SETTING: A stroke rehabilitation unit.

SUBJECTS: Sixty-seven aphasic acute stroke patients who were undergoing a multi-disciplinary rehabilitation programme, including conventional speech and language therapy (SLT).

INTERVENTION: Patients were assessed on study entry and 4, 8, 12 and 24 weeks after the start of SLT. The language impairment was assessed with the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) and the communicative functional limitation associated with aphasia was measured with the Communicative Effectiveness Index (CETI).Results. There was a statistically significant correlation between the two scales for all assessment periods (Pearson's r=0.71; P<0.01).

CONCLUSION: The study suggests that in the acute and subacute stages of stroke the scores of WAB and CETI can be surmised from one another.