Unilateral Neglect

Original Editor - Emily Wood

Lead Editors   - Kathy Bueckert, Alexandra Dansereau

Definition

Unilateral neglect is an attention disorder that arises as a result of injury to the cerebral cortex  (Hills, 2006). Unilateral neglect is also commonly known as contralateral neglect, hemispatial neglect, visuospatial neglect, spatial neglect, or hemi-neglect (Menon, Plummer). In unilateral neglect, patients fail to report, respond or orient to meaningful stimuli presented on the affected side (Menon). In most cases, the right parietal cortex is injured and the left side of the body and/or space is/are ignored (Yang, Zhou, Chung, Li-Tsang, & Fong, 2013). Unilateral neglect is a heterogeneous condition; different individuals may present with different symptoms. Unilateral neglect may involve various modalities, including visual, auditory, somatosensory or kinetic (Yang et al., 2013). Unilateral neglect is generally classified in one of two ways: by the modality that is affected or by the space that is affected (i.e. personal or extrapersonal space). It is important to remember that these classifications may overlap and intersect (Plummer).

Mechanism of Injury / Pathological Process

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Clinical Presentation

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Diagnostic Procedures

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Outcome Measures

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Management / Interventions

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Differential Diagnosis

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Key Evidence

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Resources

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References

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