Different perceived foreign accents in one patient after prerolandic hematoma

Abstract

Foreign accent syndrome (FAS), a rare disorder characterized by the emergence of a new accent perceived as foreign by listeners, is usually reported with left brain damage. We here report the case of a 28-year-old native Brazilian who appeared, to the examiner, to show a North American accent during recovery from Broca's aphasia. The lesion was due to a frontal hematoma. Without referring specifically to speech, we asked 10 independent observers to comment on a videotape of the patient's interview. Seven reported that the patient had a foreign accent, while 3 simply noted a 'strange' accent. The observers did not agree on the origin of the accent, 5 identifying it as Spanish, 1 as German, and 1 as south Brazilian. These findings suggest that FAS is not due to the acquisition of a specific foreign accent, but to impairment of the suprasegmental linguistic abilities (tone, accent, pauses, rhythm, and vocal stress) that make it possible to distinguish native language.