The top 10 research priorities relating to long-term aphasia, following stroke

Background: Studies with people with aphasia are warranted as this group is often excluded from research. Stakeholder derived research priorities are seen as an opportunity to identify what matters most to people with aphasia, their families and health professionals, and are desirable in order to inform research funding bodies. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to report on the top 10 research priorities related to long term aphasia from the perspective of people with aphasia (PWA), their carers and speech and language therapists (SLT). Methods: In this study we adopted the James Lind Alliance methodology, established to bring patients, carers and clinicians together in a ‘priority setting partnerships (PSP)’ to identify and prioritize unanswered research questions. Results: 46 participants (21 PWA, 18 SLTs and 7 carers) were included in the study. A top 10 research priority list was derived for each. Research priorities were grouped into themes (‘General management strategies’, ‘Aphasia & Cognition’, ‘Aphasia, carers & family, ‘Specific treatments’, ‘Aphasia & depression’ and ‘Communicating with PWA’) to facilitate identification of similarities and differences between groups. An overall top 10 was also established. The overall top 4 research priorities related to ‘General management strategies’ theme. The next 6 included 3 relating to ‘Communication with PWA’, 1 pertained to ‘Aphasia & Cognition’, 1 to ‘Aphasia & Carers’ and 1 to ‘Specific treatments’ theme. Conclusions: The top 10 research priorities related to aphasia have been identified using a rigorous and person centered method. The top 10 should be used to provide guidance for researchers and funding bodies.