Non-organic language deficits following awake brain surgery: A case report

Abstract

Awake surgery with Direct Electrical Stimulation (DES) is the gold standard’ to resect brain tumors in the language dominant emisphere [1]. Milian et al. [2] stated that most patients tolrate the awake procedure well and would undergo a similar ntervention again if necessary. Intraoperative pain was reported n 30% of the patients, strong anxiety in 10–14% of the patients. ost-traumatic stress disorders were not found in the early postperative phase nor during follow-up. However, postoperative sychological symptoms such as repetitive distressing recollection r dreams related to the awake surgery, persistent avoidance of timuli associated with the awake procedure and increased arousal ave been reported [2]. To the best of our knowledge, psychogenic anguage disturbances after awake brain surgery have never been escribed before. In general, non-organic language disturbances language deficits not due to any underlying organic disorder or isproportional to the extent of the underlying pathology) have arely been reported in the literature. We describe a patient with tumor in the left anterior temporal lobe who following awake umor surgery developed a constellation of linguistic symptoms