Sentence size and syllable timing in aphasia

Syllable durations were evaluated in sentences of two lengths produced by patients with fluent and nonfluent aphasia. The fluent group exhibited deviant timing in final syllables in both stimulus sizes and an inability to distinguish between medial and final syllables in long stimuli. The nonfluent patients exhibited deviant final syllable duration in long sentences only. These outcomes are consistent with the notion that differential underlying mechanisms account for timing deficits in fluent and nonfluent aphasia. Some possibilities are suggested.