title: Synesthetic associations and psychosensory symptoms of temporal epilepsy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Synesthesia manifests as unusual associative connections that may cause intriguing experiences due to various cross-modal connections, for example, a sound may be experienced as color. Several findings indicate that temporal lobe seizures or seizure-like conditions and increased excitability may influence various unusual cross-sensory links and synesthetic experiences.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this context, the purpose of this study is to find relationships between word-color associations and psychopathological symptoms related to temporal lobe epilepsy and limbic irritability (Limbic System Checklist [LSCL-33]), symptoms of traumatic stress (Trauma Symptoms Checklist [TSC-40]), and depressive symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory [BDI-II]) in 71 participants (mean age =25.23 years) recruited from the general population. The whole sample included two subgroups according to levels of psychosensory and affective symptoms related to temporal epilepsy measured by LSCL-33.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results in both subgroups indicate specific words correlated with the scores of psychopathological symptoms measured by LSCL-33, BDI-II, and TSC-40. Significant Spearman correlations have been predominantly found in the subgroup of participants with higher levels of LSCL-33.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results indicate a specific synesthetic-like mechanism in association processes that reflects psychopathological symptoms related to increased temporo-limbic excitability.
authors.affiliation: Center for Neuropsychiatric Research of Traumatic Stress, Department of Psychiatry, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Neckar
authors.affiliation: Center for Neuropsychiatric Research of Traumatic Stress, Department of Psychiatry, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Petr
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bob
keywords: colors; limbic irritability; stress; synesthesia; temporal lobe epilepsy; word associations
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