Language production by patients with Parkinson disease before and after unilateral posteroventral pallidotomy

Measures of language production (e.g., informativeness, cohesion) could further our understanding of the cognitive-linguistic abilities of patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and guide treatment focused on improving the overall communication ability. The current study measured correct information units (CIUs), total words, cohesion markers, content units (CUs), interpretive (CUis), and lexical efficiency in narrative (i.e., Cookie Theft and Cat Story) and conversational language production before and after unilateral posteroventral pallidotomy (UPVP). Twenty-four adults (average age, 64 years) with PD were tested: 13 had left PVP (8 men; 5 women), and 11 had right PVP (6 men; 5 women). No significant differences between pre- and post-UPVP or between left and right UPVP were found for these measures of language. Research regarding how the globus pallidus may or may not be involved in specific language skills and functional language tasks could inform the use of functional neurosurgery to treat patients with PD.