Altitudinal Neglect Following Traumatic Brain Injury: A Case Report

We present an analysis of altitudinal neglect in a patient who following traumatic brain injury showed extinction to a visual stimulus presented in the lower field when another stimulus was simultaneously presented in the upper field. When estimating the midpoint of vertically-oriented rods presented below eye level using visual cues, tactile/kinesthetic cues or a combination of these cues, she consistently pointed higher than control subjects did. She showed less severe impairments when the rods were presented at or above eye level. When estimating the midpoint between two clicks presented above and below her head, she pointed higher than did control subjects. These deficits cannot be accounted for by sensory or motor disorders and appear to be due to a disorder in attending to stimuli in the lower half to space.