Evoked potential correlates of right hemisphere involvement in language recovery following stroke
A. C. Papanicolaou, B. D. Moore, H. S. Levin and H. M. Eisenberg
A probe evoked potentials procedure was used to assess the relative
engagement of both cerebral hemispheres during a language task in the
following four groups of dextral adults: left hemisphere (LH)-damaged
aphasics recovering from stroke, dysarthrics, right hemisphere (RH)-damaged
nonaphasic patients, and normal control subjects. In agreement with
previous findings using the probe procedure, the present results indicate
greater task-specific RH activation in recovering aphasics and, to a lesser
degree, dysarthric patients and greater LH activation in both nonaphasic,
RH-damaged patients and normal control subjects. On the basis of these
data, we suggest that increasing participation of the nondominant
hemisphere may subserve restitution of language in adults sustaining LH
lesions.
