[Unilateral spatial neglect: 30 years of research, discoveries, hope, and (especially) questions]

Abstract

Unilateral spatial neglect (USN) was defined 30 years ago as "a failure to report, respond, or orient to stimuli that are presented contralateral to a brain lesion, provided that this failure is not due to elementary sensory or motor disorders" by Heilman and Valenstein (1979). Even though this definition still holds, the last 30 years have been characterized by a profusion of clinical descriptions, neuroanatomical investigations and theoretical models of neglect. This article summarizes the wealth of neuroanatomical, clinical and experimental data concerning USN, by focusing on attentional and spatial deficits. Finally, some perspectives on neglect research are outlined.