Visual extinction for motion.

Abstract

PURPOSE: To alert clinicians to the heretofore undescribed visual behavioral phenomenon of visual extinction limited to motion. METHODS: Neuro-ophthalmological, neuropsychological and neuroimaging assessment of a 57-year-old man with vague visual complaints. RESULTS: Extinction limited to visual motion perception in the left hemifield was demonstrated. The visual defect was attributed to a lesion involving the right occipito-temporo-parietal region in the presence of a left posterior infarction. CONCLUSION: The importance of clinical examination for detection of this specific higher-order visual defect is stressed. The present observation may be helpful in understanding the effects of attention on visual perception and may have important implications for rehabilitation of patients with visual neglect.