Constructional apraxia was evaluated in patients with aphasia using a cube-copying task. It was assessed whether quantitative assessment of cube copying could be used to estimate the performance intelligence quotient (IQ) according to neuropsychological tests. Abnormality in the cube-copying test was observed in 42 of 46 patients (91.3%). Performance according to Raven's coloured progressive matrices and the revised Wechshler adult intelligence scale (WAIS-R) in patients with poor cube copying was significantly lower than in the other four patients. Numbers of the connections completed and plane-orientation errors made in the cube-copying test were significantly correlated with performance IQ on the WAIS-R, correlating particularly with block design, digit symbol, and object assembly in performance IQ subtests. The quantitatively scored cube-copying test, then, can roughly predict non-verbal IQ in patients with aphasia.
We report a patient with medial medullary infarction who could be diagnosed in an early stage, and we discuss the role of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for stroke rehabilitation. In the case of our patient, the infarction was difficult to diagnose because the patient had atypical features and a past history of head injury. Nonetheless, we could diagnose the medial medullary infarction easily using diffusion MRI within several hours of onset. Then, a rehabilitation program was started the day after onset. We believe that diffusion MRI can be used as a useful method for very early stage diagnosis and to execute rehabilitation for early stroke patients.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.