Synonyms
Disturbance of body schema
Definition
Disturbance in the normal awareness of one’s own body, typically characterized by one or more of the following symptoms: (1) a tendency to ignore or neglect one side of the body, (2) a failure to recognize or difficulty in identifying a specific part of the body (usually a limb or part of a limb), (3) difficulty in differentiating the right from the left side of the body, or (4) recognizing an impairment in a part of the body (anosognosia).
Current Knowledge
Asomatognosia most commonly results from acute or subacute brain lesions and may affect one or both sides of the body. Unilateral neglect generally involves an entire side of the body, more commonly the left. This might be reflected in a failure to shave the affected side of the face, putting a glove only on one hand, or reduced use of the involved limb for certain activities, even though it is physically capable of doing so. If a limb is paralyzed, the patient may either deny or...
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References and Readings
Feinberg, T., Venneri, A., Simone, A., Fan, Y., & Northoff, G. (2010). The neuroanatomy of asomatognosia and somatoparaphrenia. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 81(3), 276–281.
Hecaen, H., & Albert, M. L. (1978). Human neuropsychology (pp. 303–330). New York: Wiley.
Heilman, K. M., Watson, R. T., & Valenstein, E. (2003). Neglect and related disorders. In K. Heilman & E. Valenstein (Eds.), Clinical neuropsychology (pp. 296–346). New York: Oxford University Press.
Kortte, K. B., & Wegener, S. T. (2004). Denial of illness in medical rehabilitation populations: Theory, research and definitions. Rehabilitation Psychology, 49, 187–199.
Prigatano, G. P., & Schacter, D. L. (1991). Awareness of deficit after brain injury: Clinical and theoretical issues. New York: Oxford University Press.
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Mendoza, J.E. (2018). Asomatognosia. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_706
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_706
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