Lateralized changes in autonomic arousal during emotional processing in patients with unilateral temporal lobe seizure onset.
The valence model of emotion, which posits cerebral lateralization for positive and negative emotional processing, was investigated in patients with unilateral mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and controls by measuring skin conductance levels (SCLs) and heart rate (HR) while positive and negative emotional photographs were viewed. Left TLEs exhibited selective SCL hyperarousal when viewing negative emotional slides relative to controls and right TLEs. In contrast, right TLEs showed no significant differences compared with the other groups. Results are consistent with left hemispheric specialization for positive emotional expression. Dysfunction of left mesial temporal lobe structures may result in autonomic hyperarousal and a release of the unrestrained negative emotional tendencies of the right hemisphere.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000502:physiology*; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004833:Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology*; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008606:Mental Processes / Q000502:physiology*; D014888:Wechsler Scales