Abstract
Human consciousness can be divided into two categories: substance and vigilance. Substance, the content of perception and thought, is obviously based on the function of cortical structures, whereas vigilance depends on neuronal systems originating in the rostral brain stem (pons and mesencephalon) and projecting to major parts of the cortex. Damage to these systems may lead to unconsciousness even if the cortex is spared. In the mesodiencephalic area, the activating systems for each of the hemispheres are in close vicinity.
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© 1993 Springer-Verlag Berlin · Heidelberg
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Boegner, F., Marx, P. (1993). Bilateral Thalamic Infarction: A Contribution to Coma Analysis. In: Caplan, L.R., Hopf, H.C. (eds) Brain-Stem Localization and Function. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-78172-8_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-78172-8_5
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