Emotion Discrimination in Temporal Lobectomy Patients
Abstract number :
3.066
Submission category :
Year :
2001
Submission ID :
3120
Source :
www.aesnet.org
Presentation date :
12/1/2001 12:00:00 AM
Published date :
Dec 1, 2001, 06:00 AM
Authors :
C.G. Kohler, MD, Neuropsychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; M.A. Carran, MD, Neurology, UMDNJ, Camden, NJ; R. Cooperman, BS, Neuropsychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; T. Turner, BS, Neuropsychiatry, University of P
RATIONALE: It is assumed that emotion discrimination is subserved by limbic brain areas. We investigated the ability to recognize and differentiate emotionally valent faces in patients who had undergone temporal lobectomy. We anticipated that emotion discrimination is impaired in temporal lobectomy patients. Furthermore emotion discrimination may be differentially impaired in right temporal lobectomy patients.
METHODS: 18 right (M:F=12:6), 16 left (M:F=10:6) patients who had undergone temporal lobectomy at least 6 months prior underwent testing for emotion recognition and differentiation of happy and sad faces using standardized computerized batteries. We compared these groups to a healthy control group matched for gender and age.
RESULTS: We found that temporal lobectomy patients performed worse on measures of recognition (p=.002) and discrimination (p=.001). Comparing temporal lobectomy patients, we found right temporal lobectomy patients to perform worse on sad discrimination (p=.05).
CONCLUSIONS: Emotion discrimination is impaired in groups of right and left temporal lobectomy patients. Our findings underscore that emotional processing is dependent on intact temporal lobe functioning. Furthermore, our findings support the principal role of the right temporal lobe in sad processing.