scholarly journals Regional Shape Abnormalities in Thalamus and Verbal Memory Impairment After Subcortical Infarction

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 476-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gang Liu ◽  
Xiaoqing Tan ◽  
Chao Dang ◽  
Shuangquan Tan ◽  
Shihui Xing ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Verbal Memory ◽  
Memory Impairment ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
Change Rate ◽  
Immediate Recall ◽  
Stroke Group ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke ◽  
Subcortical Infarction

Background. Subcortical infarcts can result in verbal memory impairment, but the potential underlying mechanisms remain unknown. Objective. We investigated the spatiotemporal deterioration patterns of brain structures in patients with subcortical infarction and identified the regions that contributed to verbal memory impairment. Methods. Cognitive assessment and structural magnetic resonance imaging were performed 1, 4, and 12 weeks after stroke onset in 28 left-hemisphere and 22 right-hemisphere stroke patients with subcortical infarction. Whole-brain volumetric analysis combined with a further-refined shape analysis was conducted to analyze longitudinal morphometric changes in brain structures and their relationship to verbal memory performance. Results. Between weeks 1 and 12, significant volume decreases in the ipsilesional basal ganglia, inferior white matter, and thalamus were found in the left-hemisphere stroke group. Among those 3 structures, only the change rate of the thalamus volume was significantly correlated with that in immediate recall. For the right-hemisphere stroke group, only the ipsilesional basal ganglia survived the week 1 to week 12 group comparison, but its change rate was not significantly correlated with the verbal memory change rate. Shape analysis of the thalamus revealed atrophies of the ipsilesional thalamic subregions connected to the prefrontal, temporal, and premotor cortices in the left-hemisphere stroke group and positive correlations between the rates of those atrophies and the change rate in immediate recall. Conclusions. Secondary damage to the thalamus, especially to the left subregions connected to specific cortices, may be associated with early verbal memory impairment following an acute subcortical infarct.

Not Just Language: Persisting Lateralized Visuospatial Impairment after Left Hemisphere Stroke

2016 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 695-704 ◽  
Author(s):  
Krista Schendel ◽  
Nina F. Dronkers ◽  
And U. Turken
Keyword(s):  
Visual Search ◽  
Visual Attention ◽  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Search Task ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Visual Search Task ◽  
Viewing Time ◽  
Stroke Group ◽  
The Right ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke

AbstractObjectives: Imbalances in spatial attention are most often associated with right hemisphere brain injury. This report assessed 25 chronic left hemisphere stroke patients for attentional bias. Methods: Participants were evaluated with a computerized visual search task and a standardized neuropsychological assessment known as the Behavioral Inattention Test (BITC). Twenty age-matched controls were also tested. Results: Although little to no attentional impairment was observed on the BITC, the computerized visual search task revealed statistically significant contralesional attentional impairment in the left hemisphere stroke group. Specifically, these participants required 208 ms more viewing time, on average, to reliably detect visual targets on the right side of the display compared to detection on the left side, while controls showed a difference of only 8 ms between the two sides. Conclusions: The observation of significant leftward visuospatial bias in this chronic stroke group provides further evidence that the left hemisphere also plays a role in the balance of visual attention across space. These results have implications for left hemisphere patients who are often not screened for visuospatial problems, as well as for theories of visual attention which have primarily emphasized the role of the right hemisphere. (JINS, 2016, 22, 695–704)

scholarly journals Right hemisphere grey matter structure and language outcomes in chronic left hemisphere stroke

Brain ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 139 (1) ◽  
pp. 227-241 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shihui Xing ◽  
Elizabeth H. Lacey ◽  
Laura M. Skipper-Kallal ◽  
Xiong Jiang ◽  
Michelle L. Harris-Love ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Grey Matter ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Language Outcomes ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke

scholarly journals Acquired dysgraphia in adults following right or left-hemisphere stroke

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 236-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaqueline de Carvalho Rodrigues ◽  
Denise Ren da Fontoura ◽  
Jerusa Fumagalli de Salles
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Phonological Processing ◽  
Word Processing ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Case Series ◽  
Lexical Route ◽  
Right Hemisphere Damage ◽  
Dual Route Model ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke ◽  
Graphemic Buffer

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess the strengths and difficulties in word and pseudoword writing in adults with left- and right-hemisphere strokes, and discuss the profiles of acquired dysgraphia in these individuals.METHODS: The profiles of six adults with acquired dysgraphia in left- or right-hemisphere strokes were investigated by comparing their performance on word and pseudoword writing tasks against that of neurologically healthy adults. A case series analysis was performed on the patients whose impairments on the task were indicative of acquired dysgraphia.RESULTS: Two patients were diagnosed with lexical dysgraphia (one with left hemisphere damage, and the other with right hemisphere damage), one with phonological dysgraphia, another patient with peripheral dysgraphia, one patient with mixed dysgraphia and the last with dysgraphia due to damage to the graphemic buffer. The latter patients all had left-hemisphere damage (LHD). The patterns of impairment observed in each patient were discussed based on the dual-route model of writing.CONCLUSION: The fact that most patients had LHD rather than right-hemisphere damage (RHD) highlights the importance of the former structure for word processing. However, the fact that lexical dysgraphia was also diagnosed in a patient with RHD suggests that these individuals may develop writing impairments due to damage to the lexical route, leading to heavier reliance on phonological processing. Our results are of significant importance to the planning of writing interventions in neuropsychology.

scholarly journals Processing of metaphors in transcortical motor aphasia

2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 339-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renata Mancopes ◽  
Fernanda Schultz
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Great Emphasis ◽  
Clinical Aspects ◽  
Metaphor Comprehension ◽  
Motor Aphasia ◽  
The Right ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke ◽  
Comprehension Tests ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Great emphasis has been placed on the right hemisphere, due to its possible selective contribution, in the processing of metaphorical statements. Objectives: To describe the processing of metaphors in the case of a patient with transcortical motor aphasia, using specific tests for patients with encephalic injuries of the right hemisphere, and to contribute to the discussion on the inter-hemispheric relationships associated with this function. Methods: A 54 year-old man with transcortical motor aphasia was evaluated three years after a left hemisphere stroke. The tasks of comprehension of metaphors were based on the subtest Metaphor Comprehension Task of the Montreal Evaluation of Communications Scale (MEC). Two metaphor comprehension tests were applied, in 45-minute sessions with a 48 hour interval between each. Test 1 involved comprehension of the metaphors according to the options offered, and Test 2 the comprehension of metaphors measured by response time and visual field. Results: Although the right hemisphere was not affected by the stroke in this case, difficulties were observed in the processing of metaphors. Conclusions: This study suggests that the left hemisphere participates in the processing of figurative meanings. The adaptability of the brain can also re-accommodate the uninjured areas of the brain, causing the dynamic of the brain to be modified. As a result, deducing cerebral functions based on clinical data can be problematic. The value of this study is that it can contribute to clinical aspects of language rehabilitation.

Postcallosotomy language impairments in patients with crossed cerebral dominance

1990 ◽  
Vol 72 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberlee J. Sass ◽  
Robert A. Novelly ◽  
Dennis D. Spencer ◽  
Susan S. Spencer
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Verbal Memory ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Cerebral Dominance ◽  
Language Impairments ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Left Handed ◽  
Buccofacial Apraxia ◽  
Clinically Significant ◽  
Fine Print

✓ Language impairments were reviewed retrospectively in patients who underwent partial or total corpus callosum section for medically refractory secondary generalized epilepsy. Postoperatively, four of 32 patients had clinically significant language impairments that were not present prior to the operation. All involved primarily verbal output (speech and writing) and spared verbal comprehension. Written language skills (reading and spelling), verbal memory, and verbal reasoning abilities were impaired to varying degrees. These impairments were associated with crossed cerebral dominance. Three patients with severe speech difficulties after surgery were right hemisphere-dominant for speech and were right-handed. One left hemisphere speech-dominant, left-handed patient was agraphic after surgery, but spoke normally. It is concluded from these data and from other reports in the literature that three syndromes of language disturbance may follow callosotomy. The first, involving speech difficulty but sparing writing, is attributable to buccofacial apraxia. The second involves speech and writing difficulties and occurs in right hemisphere-dominant right-handed patients. The third involves dysgraphia with intact speech and occurs in left hemisphere-dominant left-handed patients.

scholarly journals Volumetric MRI analysis of brain structures in patients with history of first and repeated suicide attempts: a cross sectional study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milda Sarkinaite ◽  
Rymante Gleizniene ◽  
Virginija Adomaitiene ◽  
Kristina Dambrauskiene ◽  
Nijole Raskauskiene ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Suicide Attempt ◽  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Cortical Thickness ◽  
Suicide Attempts ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Brain Structures ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Suicide Attempters ◽  
History Of

Abstract Background Structural brain changes are found in suicide attempters, as well as in patients with mental disorders. It remains unclear whether the suicidal behavior is related to atrophy of brain regions and how the morphology of specific brain areas is changing with each suicide attempt. This cross-sectional study examined volumetric differences in brain regions among patients with history of first and repeated suicide attempts in comparison to healthy controls (HC). Methods The sample consisted of 56 adults, non-psychotic patients without cognitive impairment and any organic brain disorders hospitalized after first suicide attempt (first SA) (n=29) and more than one suicide attempt (SA>1) during the lifetime (n=27); and 54 adult volunteers without history of mental disorder and suicide attempts, designated as HC. The MRI data were collected using 1.5 T Siemens Avanto scanner. Brain cortical thickness, grey and white matter volumes were measured using FreeSurfer 6.0 automatic segmentation technique. Results In comparison to HC, patients with first SA had 3.5, 3.58 and 4.19% significantly lower mean cortical thickness of the superior and rostral middle frontal areas of the left hemisphere and superior frontal area of the right hemisphere, respectively; 4.09, 4.02 and 4.49% lower mean cortical thickness of the inferior, middle and superior temporal areas of the left hemisphere, respectively. In comparison to HC, patients after SA>1 had a significantly lower mean cortical thickness (from 4.02 to 8.33%) in ten areas of frontal cortex of the left hemisphere and seven areas of the right hemisphere; from 3.90 to 6.04% difference in six areas of temporal cortex in both hemispheres. The comparison of hippocampus volume showed a significantly lower mean volume (7.86 to 9.89%) of left and right parts in patients with SA>1, but not in patients with first SA. Conclusions Hospitalized suicide attempters had lower frontal and temporal cortical thickness and smaller parts of hippocampus than HC; these differences were significantly higher in repeated suicide attempters than in patients with first SA. Our findings suggest that repeated suicidal behavior is associated with intensifying atrophy of specific brain structures, independently of diagnosis of depressive disorders.

scholarly journals Effects of Direction and Index of Difficulty on Aiming Movements after Stroke

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Paola Ribeiro Coqueiro ◽  
Sandra Maria Sbeghen Ferreira de Freitas ◽  
Cassandra Mendes Assunção e Silva ◽  
Sandra Regina Alouche
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Movement Execution ◽  
Task Constraints ◽  
Aiming Movements ◽  
Brain Hemispheres ◽  
Hemisphere Lesion ◽  
Index Of Difficulty ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke

Background.Brain hemispheres play different roles in the control of aiming movements that are impaired after unilateral stroke. It is not clear whether those roles are influenced by the direction and the difficulty of the task.Objective.To evaluate the influence of direction and index of difficulty (ID) of the task on performance of ipsilesional aiming movements after unilateral stroke.Methods.Ten individuals with right hemisphere stroke, ten with left hemisphere stroke, and ten age- and gender-matched controls performed the aiming movements on a digitizing tablet as fast as possible. Stroke individuals used their ipsilesional arm. The direction (ipsilateral or contralateral), size (0.8 or 1.6 cm), and distance (9 or 18 cm) of the targets, presented on a monitor, were manipulated and determined to be of different ID (3.5, 4.5, and 5.5).Results.Individuals with right hemisphere lesion were more sensitive to ID of the task, affecting planning and final position accuracy. Left hemisphere lesion generated slower and less smooth movements and was more influenced by target distance. Contralateral movements and higher ID increased planning demands and hindered movement execution.Conclusion.Right and left hemisphere damages are differentially influenced by task constraints which suggest their complementary roles in the control of aiming movements.

scholarly journals Right hemisphere structural adaptation and changing language skills years after left hemisphere stroke

Brain ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 140 (6) ◽  
pp. 1718-1728 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas M. H. Hope ◽  
Alex P. Leff ◽  
Susan Prejawa ◽  
Rachel Bruce ◽  
Zula Haigh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Structural Adaptation ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke

Evoked Potential Correlates of Recovery from Aphasia after Focal Left Hemisphere Injury in Adults

Neurosurgery ◽  
1984 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 412-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Papanicolaou Andrew ◽  
S. Levin Harvey ◽  
M. Eisenberg Howard
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Verbal Memory ◽  
Evoked Potential ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Hemispheric Specialization ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Normal Subjects ◽  
Hemispheric Activation ◽  
Cerebral Reorganization ◽  
The Right

Abstract An evoked potentials (EPs) paradigm that has been effective in demonstrating asymmetries in hemispheric activation during cognitive tasks was used to assess cerebral reorganization for language in recovered aphasics. Cortical click EPs were recorded bilaterally in normal volunteers, recovered aphasics who had sustained focal left hemisphere injury, and nonaphasic patients with diffuse injuries during a control condition of attending only to the click and during a verbal memory task. During that task, EP amplitude attenuation occurred in the left hemisphere for the normal subjects and the nonaphasic patients and in the right hemisphere for the recovered aphasics. These contrasting asymmetries in hemispheric activation suggest that a shift of hemispheric specialization for verbal processing contributes to the recovery of linguistic competence in adult aphasics.

scholarly journals Right-hemisphere compensation during word production: A single case of left-hemisphere young stroke

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina Chupina ◽  
Joanna Sierpowska ◽  
Xiaochen Zheng ◽  
Anna Dewenter ◽  
Maria Carla Piastra ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Left Hemisphere ◽  
Structural Damage ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Word Finding ◽  
Deterministic Tractography ◽  
Left Hemisphere Stroke ◽  
Phonological Retrieval

Our understanding of post-stroke language recovery and underlying neuroplasticity is largely based on older age groups, who have increasing brain pathology and potentially more bilateral language functioning. We present the case of A., a 23 y.o. woman with chronic aphasia from a left-hemisphere stroke. Deterministic tractography indicated that A.’s language-relevant white matter structures were severely damaged. Using magnetoencephalography (MEG), we explored A.’s conceptual preparation and subsequent word planning abilities. Context-driven and Bare picture-naming tasks revealed substantial naming deficits, manifesting as word-finding difficulties and semantic paraphasias about half of the time. Naming was however facilitated by semantically constraining lead-in sentences. Altogether, this pattern indicates intact conceptual preparation but disrupted lexical and phonological retrieval abilities. MEG revealed that A.’s naming-related neural responses differed from that of a matched control. Source localisation showed active but differential recruitment of right-hemisphere structures (300-400 ms post-picture onset) during both correct naming (right temporo-parietal regions) and anomic (right inferior frontal gyrus) attempts. We consider that, despite A.’s young age, the presumed strong degree of language lateralisation and extensive structural damage limited her recovery. Although A.’s right hemisphere responded in a timely manner during word planning, its lexical and phonological retrieval abilities remained modest.

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