A case report of long-term effects of Delayed post-hypoxic leukoencephalopathy (DPHL) following benzodiazepine overdose.

We report a neuropsychological evaluation for a 39-year-old, right-handed, white female who 8 years ago developed delayed post-hypoxic leukoencephalopathy (DPHL), a rare demyelinating syndrome, two-weeks following an anoxic brain injury due to an overdose from benzodiazepines. An extensive record review documenting her medical timeline and treatment over the last 8 years was conducted using the available EMR system, which also included both EEG and neuroimaging data. Eight years post injury, a comprehensive neuropsychological battery was administered with corrected normative data for age, race, education, and other demographic factors when available.

Life satisfaction after traumatic brain injury and the World Health Organization model of disability.

Objective: To determine which components of the World Health Organization's International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) are most predictive of global life satisfaction after traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Design: Prospective evaluation of 180 individuals enrolled in a TBI model system project site.

Results: Multiple regression analysis indicated that the combination of ICF components (body function and structure, activities, and participation) and demographic factors significantly predicted life satisfaction and accounted for 17% of the variance.

Biases in attentional orientation and magnitude estimation explain crossover: neglect is a disorder of both.

Crossover refers to a pattern of performance on the line bisection test in which short lines are bisected on the side opposite the true center of long lines. Although most patients with spatial neglect demonstrate crossover, contemporary theories of neglect cannot explain it. In contrast, we show that blending the psychophysical construct of magnitude estimation with neglect theory not only explains crossover, but also addresses a quantitative feature of neglect that is independent of spatial deficits.

Violent traumatic brain injury: occurrence, patient characteristics, and risk factors from the Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems project.

Objectives: To examine the occurrence of and characteristics associated with violent traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the Traumatic Brain Injury Model Systems (TBIMS) project for 4 of the 5 original Model Systems centers and to determine the patient characteristics of this group, as well as the risk factors for sustaining such an injury.

Design: Prospective evaluation of individuals with violent TBI over a 10-year period.

Setting: Four TBIMS centers.

Are psychophysical functions derived from line bisection reliable?

Psychophysical functions are used to characterize both normal perception and altered perception among patients with neglect, yet the reliability of these functions is rarely examined. The present study examined two-week, test-retest reliability for power functions derived from line bisection data among 58 normal, young and old, male and female subjects. Power function exponents and constants were, at best, moderately reliable over time.