Overview
Aphasia is an allolalia syndrome, the absence of acquired language function due to the impairment of brain. And it is characterized by one or several aspects of dysfunction to linguistic symbol, such as gnosia identifying, understanding and acquiring, organizing and applying or expressing, etc. The patient suffering aphasia cannot speak what they were able to say or what they're going to say, cannot write the words they used before, often have difficulties in understanding languages to different extent. This disease is a category of diseases such as "sudden aphonia', "inflexible tongue", "speech disability", etc. in TCM. According to the theory of TCM, it is caused by anemogenous phlegm and stagnant blood, because they stagnate cerebellar collaterals and glossal orifices, which cause vague mind or dysfunction of meridians. When it comes to the therapy, calming endogenous wind and dissipating phlegm, inducing resuscitation to activate meridians and eliminating stasis to activate blood are effective.

Treatment
1. Lianquan (RN 23)
The maneuver of dark tortoise seeking hole should be adopted to treat aphasia caused by cerebrovascular diseases. Make sure the needle tip is inserted obliquely towards the root of tongue at depth of 0.5-0.8 cun until the patient gains acu-esthesia, after which detect and manipulate the needle left to right and up and down. Retain needles for 10-20 minutes and do it every day. 10 times make up a course of treatment and the patient should be administered 2-3 courses.

2. Yamen (DUI 5)
Make the patient sit in pronation with the head anteverted and nuchal muscle relaxed. Insert the needle 0.5-1 cun towards submaxilla slowly after the routine point-skin degerming, and then rotate the needle in middle strength and retain it for 10-20 minutes. Remember to treat it every day. 10 times make up a course of treatment. After a 5-7 days' rest, next course should begin.

3. Yongquan (KI 1)
This point is used to treat traumatic aphasia. Puncture into KII in bilateral soles with 1 cun filiform needle (No.28), by reducing techniques with high stimulation. Then attach G6805 impulse electro-acupuncture equipment to the patient, with stimulus of high frequency, continuous wave and middle to high intensity for 20 minutes.

4. Shuigou (DU 26)
This point is used to treat hysterical aphonia. Tell the patient the acu-esthesia he will sense before the acupuncture treatment. After the routine point-skin sterilization, with a 45°angle, insert the needle about 0.5 cun slightly upwardly by the provocative manipulation of middle to high strength. Try to let the patient make sound when he or she gets obvious aching and distending sensation, then retain the needle for 15-20 minutes if the patient manages to do so.

Note
Mostly the aphasia is intractable, so it's necessary to prepaid rehabilitation plan carefully. And language training is a partner treatment available to acupuncture therapy. What's more, the acupuncture manipulation should be done strongly during a long term in order to get intense acu-esthesia.