Article
Article
Apraxia
Article By:
Canter, Gerald J. Department of Communicative Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.
Last reviewed:February 2021
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.044700
An impairment in the performance of voluntary actions despite intact motor power and coordination, sensation and perception, and comprehension. Apraxia is a neurological condition in which there is difficulty with skilled tasks or learned movements despite having the physical ability and motivation to accomplish them. An apraxic person knows the act to be carried out and has the requisite sensory-motor capacities; yet, performance is defective. The abnormality is highlighted when the act must be performed on demand and out of context. The individual may perform normally in such activities as hammering or tooth brushing performed with the object in hand, especially in a natural situation, but will often fail when required to pantomime such acts. In general, apraxia is the result of brain disease or damage (see illustration). See also: Brain; Nervous system (vertebrate); Nervous system disorders; Neurobiology
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