Retinotopic modulation of space misrepresentation in unilateral neglect: evidence from quadrantanopia.

Abstract

A patient with right sided brain damage suffered contralesional neglect, inferior quadrantanopia (with 0 degrees sparing in the left eye and 13 degrees sparing in the right), and a visual field restriction (to 15 degrees ) in the upper contralesional quadrant of the left eye. In binocular vision, the patient showed underestimation of the horizontal size of contralesional line segments unless cued to localise their end points. When asked to reproduce, in monocular vision, 10 degrees and 20 degrees distances between two attentionally cued end points lying on the frontal vertical plane, the patient showed relative contralesional overextension and ipselesional underextension along the directions falling within the blind sectors of the neglected space. No asymmetry was present along the directions falling within the seeing sectors of the same space. These findings suggest precise retinotopic modulation of space misrepresentation in unilateral neglect.