Aphasia in Korea

Aphasia in Korea

　Korea has been faced with problems stemming from an increasingly aging society.　One of the considerations under the circumstance is age-related diseases such as stroke.　Stroke is the most common cause of death as well as of aphasia in Korea.　However, it is true that there are limited numbers of assessment tools and intervention opportunities for patients with aphasia.　Health insurance does not yet cover speech-language assessment or treatments in Korea but patients with severe disorders can get some benefits from the long-term care insurance system.　Treatment of aphasia should be based on the evidence of research that clarify the underlying mechanism of disorders and treatment effects.　From the middle of 1990s, quality and quantity of researches on aphasia have improved remarkably in Korea.　The purpose of this paper is to introduce various clinical or research aspects of aphasia in Korea.

　Korea has been faced with problems stemming from an increasingly aging society.　One of the considerations under the circumstance is age-related diseases such as stroke.　Stroke is the most common cause of death as well as of aphasia in Korea.　However, it is true that there are limited numbers of assessment tools and intervention opportunities for patients with aphasia.　Health insurance does not yet cover speech-language assessment or treatments in Korea but patients with severe disorders can get some benefits from the long-term care insurance system.　Treatment of aphasia should be based on the evidence of research that clarify the underlying mechanism of disorders and treatment effects.　From the middle of 1990s, quality and quantity of researches on aphasia have improved remarkably in Korea.　The purpose of this paper is to introduce various clinical or research aspects of aphasia in Korea.