Synonyms
Alien limb phenomenon; Anarchic hand; Callosal apraxia; Diagnostic dyspraxia; Dr. Strangelove syndrome; Intermanual conflict; Magnetic apraxia; Wayward hand
Short Description or Definition
Alien hand syndrome (AHS) is a relatively rare manifestation of damage to specific brain regions involved in purposive voluntary movement. It is postulated to be an impairment of the “sense of agency” or, alternatively, an impairment of intentionality. The core observation is the patient report that one of his/her hands is displaying purposeful, coordinated, and goal-directed behavior over which the patient feels he/she has no direct voluntary control. The patient fails to recognize the action of one of their hands as their own. The hand, effectively, appears to manifest a “will of its own.” This unique involuntary movement disorder is characterized by coordinated, well-organized, and clearly goal-directed limb movements that would otherwise be indistinguishable from normal voluntary...
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Goldberg, G., Goodwin, M.E. (2018). Alien Hand Syndrome. 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_1877
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_1877
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