Hemi-Inattention Resulting from Left Hemisphere Brain Damage During Infancy

A case of right visual hemi-inattention is reported in a right-handed 14-year-old male who, as an infant, suffered a left hemisphere subdural hemorrhage and subsequently developed a large left posterior porencephalic cyst and right homonomous hemianopsia. Neuropsychological assessment reveals a significantly higher Verbal than Performance IQ, and evidence of hemi-inattention on tests of line bisection, picture matching from memory, and drawing figures from memory. Eye movement testing reveals poorer accuracy and latency of saccades for left-to-right eye movements than for right-to-left eye movements, but no appreciable difference in searching time for the left vs. the right visual spatial field. The findings are discussed in the context of developmental, educational, and rehabilitative implications with respect to the paucity of reports of visual hemi-inattention in children, and with consideration for effects unique to suffering a lesion in early infancy.