Current Controversies on Wernicke's Area and its Role in Language. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 2017 Aug;17(8):58
Date
06/29/2017Pubmed ID
28656532DOI
10.1007/s11910-017-0764-8Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85021647420 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 150 CitationsAbstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The aim of the study is to assess historical anatomical and functional definitions of Wernicke's area in light of modern lesion and neuroimaging data.
RECENT FINDINGS: "Wernicke's area" has become an anatomical label usually applied to the left posterior superior temporal gyrus and adjacent supramarginal gyrus. Recent evidence shows that this region is not critical for speech perception or for word comprehension. Rather, it supports retrieval of phonological forms (mental representations of phoneme sequences), which are used for speech output and short-term memory tasks. Focal damage to this region produces phonemic paraphasia without impairing word comprehension, i.e., conduction aphasia. Neuroimaging studies in recent decades provide evidence for a widely distributed temporal, parietal, and frontal network supporting language comprehension, which does not include the anatomically defined Wernicke area. The term Wernicke's area, if used at all, should not be used to refer to a zone critical for speech comprehension.
Author List
Binder JRAuthor
Jeffrey R. Binder MD Professor in the Neurology department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
Aphasia, WernickeComprehension
Humans
Language
Memory, Short-Term
Neural Pathways
Speech Perception
Wernicke Area
