Auditory hallucinations in acute stroke.
Auditory hallucinations are uncommon phenomena which can be directly caused by acute stroke, mostly described after lesions of the brain stem, very rarely reported after cortical strokes. The purpose of this study is to determine the frequency of this phenomenon. In a cross sectional study, 641 stroke patients were followed in the period between 1996-2000. Each patient underwent comprehensive investigation and follow-up. Four patients were found to have post cortical stroke auditory hallucinations. All of them occurred after an ischemic lesion of the right temporal lobe. After no more than four months, all patients were symptom-free and without therapy. The fact the auditory hallucinations may be of cortical origin must be taken into consideration in the treatment of stroke patients. The phenomenon may be completely reversible after a couple of months.
Lampl
Yair
Y
Department of Neurology, Edith Wolfson Medical Center, Holon, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel. y_lampl@hotmail.com
Lorberboym
Mordechai
M
Gilad
Ronit
R
Boaz
Mona
M
Sadeh
Menachem
M
D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006212:Hallucinations / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed