Aphasia: When you are trapped in silence

After a serious head injury or stroke, while families may think the patient has fully recovered, they often overlook the loss of communication ability — a common but unnoticed effect of brain injuries known as aphasia. This condition frequently goes misdiagnosed, say experts. In India, aphasia is still a major but little-known handicap. According to recent estimates, there are around two million people with aphasia in India, with a frequency of 3,000 per million and a community incidence of 43 per 100,000 every year. As June is observed as Aphasia Awareness Month, experts shed light on care and treatments.

Prof Dr. Rupam Borgohain, senior consultant neurologist and programme director – PDMDRC, Yashoda Hospitals have shared insights in an interview with The New Indian Express publication -“Depending on the underlying cause and severity of brain damage, aphasia can be either temporary or permanent,” He pointed out that while brain damage, stroke, and brain tumours are major causes of aphasia, other reasons can include severe head injuries (for eg, accidents), conditions that impact the brain, neurodegenerative conditions (eg, progressive primary aphasia — a gradual loss of language skills), and short disruptions in blood flow to the brain caused by transient ischemic attacks (TIAs), migraines, or seizures.

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