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Hypergraphia
Hypergraphia is a behavioral condition characterized by the intense desire to write or draw. Forms of hypergraphia can vary in writing style and content. It is a symptom associated with temporal lobe changes in epilepsy and in Geschwind syndrome. Structures that may have an effect on hypergraphia when damaged due to temporal lobe epilepsy are the hippocampus and Wernicke's area. Aside from temporal lobe epilepsy, chemical causes may be responsible for inducing hypergraphia. Characteristics Writing style Waxman and Geschwind were the first to describe hypergraphia, in the 1970s. The patients they observed displayed highly compulsive detailed writing, sometimes with literary creativity. The patients kept diaries, which some used to meticulously document minute details of their everyday activities, write poetry, or create lists. Case 1 of their study wrote lists of her relatives, her likes and dislikes, and the furniture in her apartment. Beside lists, the patient wrote poetr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geschwind Syndrome
Geschwind syndrome, also known as Gastaut-Geschwind, is a group of behavioral phenomena evident in some people with temporal lobe epilepsy. It is named for one of the first individuals to categorize the symptoms, Norman Geschwind, who published prolifically on the topic from 1973 to 1984. There is controversy surrounding whether it is a true neuropsychiatric disorder. Temporal lobe epilepsy causes chronic, mild, interictal (i.e. between seizures) changes in personality, which slowly intensify over time. Geschwind syndrome includes five primary changes; hypergraphia, hyperreligiosity, atypical (usually reduced) sexuality, circumstantiality, and intensified mental life. Not all symptoms must be present for a diagnosis. Only some people with epilepsy or temporal lobe epilepsy show features of Geschwind syndrome.Benson, D.F. & Hermann, B.P. (1998) Personality disorders. In J. Engel Jr. & T.A. Pedley (Eds.) Epilepsy: A comprehensive textbook. Vol. II (pp.2065–2070). Philadelphia: Lippi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alice Flaherty
Alice Weaver Flaherty is an American neurologist. She is a researcher, physician, educator and author of the 2004 book ''The Midnight Disease: The Drive to Write, Writer's Block, and the Creative Brain'', about the neural basis of creativity. Early life and education She grew up in Brookside, a hamlet of Mendham Township, New Jersey and graduated from West Morris Mendham High School. She completed her undergraduate degree and her medical degree at Harvard University as well as a fellowship there. She also completed a Ph.D. at MIT. Career Dr. Flaherty is a joint associate professor of neurology and psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. She is a neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital. She heads the MGH Neurology’s Brain Stimulator Unit, where “she uses deep brain stimulators to treat neurological disease and psychiatric disease. Her research focuses on voluntary control of action, and how human brains represent their bodies, two factors that help drive suffering in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Temporal Lobe Epilepsy
Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is a chronic disorder of the nervous system which is characterized by recurrent, unprovoked focal seizures that originate in the temporal lobe of the brain and last about one or two minutes. TLE is the most common form of epilepsy with focal seizures. A focal seizure in the temporal lobe may spread to other areas in the brain when it may become a ''focal to bilateral seizure''. TLE is diagnosed by taking a medical history, blood tests, and brain imaging. It can have a number of causes such as head injury, stroke, brain infections, structural lesions in the brain, brain tumors, or it can be of ''unknown onset''. The first line of treatment is through anticonvulsants. Surgery may be an option, especially when there is an observable abnormality in the brain. Another treatment option is electrical stimulation of the brain through an implanted device called the vagus nerve stimulator (VNS). Types Over forty types of epilepsy are recognized and these ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Virginia Ridley
McCracken King Poston Jr. (also known as McCracken Poston or "Ken" Poston; born October 24, 1959), is an American criminal defense attorney, former politician and part-time juvenile court judge. He gained national attention for several notable cases which were featured on TV series specials such as ''CNN Presents'', ''Dateline NBC'', A&E's ''American Justice'' and ''Forensic Files''. Poston is a practicing defense attorney in Georgia and Tennessee. Poston was elected and served as a state representative in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1989 to 1997. Early life and education McCracken Poston was born and raised in Northwest Georgia. After attending public schools in Catoosa County, Poston attended the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga for his undergraduate studies, and then he went on to receive his J.D. degree from the University of Georgia Law School where he was president of his class. Career Poston is a former Democratic state representative. Previously, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
