Leftward search in left unilateral spatial neglect

Abstract

The authors' previous study with an eye camera revealed that when asked to mark the centre of a line patients with left unilateral spatial neglect persist in fixating a point on its right part and place the subjective midpoint there without searching leftwards. The present study examined the patterns of leftward search of nine patients with left unilateral spatial neglect when they were required to search for the left endpoint of the line after the bisection. The patients could search leftwards beyond the subjective midpoint to place the mark at the subjective left endpoint. The initial fixation in this search always fell near the point located to the left of the subjective midpoint by the distance between the subjective midpoint and the right endpoint of the line. In patients with severe neglect the search further to the left of this point was laborious and fell short of the true left endpoint in about 80% of the trials. Our results suggest that when asked to bisect a line patients with left unilateral spatial neglect subjectively see the line as it extends equally to either side of the point where they are going to mark the subjective midpoint.