title: Pure agraphia after infarction in the superior and middle portions of the left precentral gyrus: Dissociation between Kanji and Kana.
abstract: The present study describes a Japanese patient with pure agraphia displaying differential disturbances in processing Kanji (morphogram) and Kana (syllabogram) letters after an infarction in the middle and superior portions of the left precentral gyrus. Kana errors reflected the patient's difficulty with retrieving both motor and visual letter images, whereas Kanji errors included partial letter stroke omissions or additions. This present case suggests that differences in writing disturbances between Kana and Kanji letters are caused by a differential dependency on letter motor images.
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication Disorders, School of Psychological Science, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, Ainosato 2-jo 5-chome, Kita-ku, Sapporo, 002-8072 Hokkaido, Japan. Electronic address: kuro-y@hoku-iryo-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Yoshiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kurosaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Communication Disorders, School of Psychological Science, Health Sciences University of Hokkaido, Ainosato 2-jo 5-chome, Kita-ku, Sapporo, 002-8072 Hokkaido, Japan.
authors.forename: Ryusaku
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hashimoto
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Science, Faculty of Psychological and Physical Science, Aich Gakuin University, Aichi, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tatsumi
authors.affiliation: Department of Social Welfare, Bukkyo University, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hadano
mesh_terms: D000381:Agraphia / Q000209:etiology*; D020520:Brain Infarction / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology
keywords: Kana; Kanji; Left frontal lobe; Motor writing images; Pure agraphia; Visual letter images