Early dissociation of verbal and nonverbal gestural ability in an epileptic deaf child.
Studies of sign language aphasia in deaf adults have provided the evidence for two separable verbal and nonverbal manual gesture systems. We report a congenitally deaf child with a idiopathic focal epilepsy of childhood who showed specific language impairment in French sign language. The child's amazing performances in miming or sketching pictures she was unable to sign support the notion of an early dissociation of the two gestural systems.
Metz-Lutz
M N
MN
INSERM U398, Clinique Neurologique, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, France.
de Saint Martin
A
A
Monpiou
S
S
Massa
R
R
Hirsch
E
E
Marescaux
C
C
D000328:Adult; D001154:Art; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003638:Deafness / Q000150:complications* / Q000151:congenital / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004828:Epilepsies, Partial / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005602:France; D005868:Gestures; D006801:Humans; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012813:Sign Language