title: Maze learning in patients with intracranial arachnoid cysts.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The temporal lobe is of importance for visuospatial orientation. Intracranial arachnoid cysts have a predilection for the temporal fossa, and might therefore affect visuospatial orientation. The aim was to find out whether temporal cysts affect maze learning and if surgical cyst decompression improves maze performance.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-five patients with a temporal arachnoid cyst and 17 control patients with cervical disc disease were tested in a labyrinth route in the hospital corridors the day before surgery and at least 3 months postoperatively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-five cyst patients (78 %) experienced postoperative improvement of their preoperative complaints. The cyst patients spent significantly longer time than the controls navigating through the maze in the preoperative test, 161 s and 127 s, respectively, but there was no difference in number of errors between the two groups. However, the cyst patients improved significantly in the postoperative test, both with regards to number of errors they made and time spent, contrary to the control patients, whose postoperative performance equalled that of the preoperative test. For the cyst patients, postoperative improvement in the labyrinth test correlated with the clinical outcome-but not the neuroradiological outcome-after the operation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Thus, temporal arachnoid cysts may affect visuospatial orientation and learning in a reversible manner.
authors: Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway. e.isaksen@hotmail.com
authors: Elisabeth
authors: E
authors: Isaksen
authors: Therese Hamre
authors: TH
authors: Leet
authors: Christian A
authors: CA
authors: Helland
authors: Knut
authors: K
authors: Wester
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016080:Arachnoid Cysts / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D002648:Child; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D019299:Decompression, Surgical / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011184:Postoperative Period; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D055815:Young Adult