Selective deficit of time perception in a patient with right prefrontal cortex lesion.

Abstract

The neural systems underlying subjective perception of time are of increasing interest for neuroscientists. Previous studies in humans and in animals have documented a role of the cerebellum and basal ganglia as an internal clock of discrete temporal units.1,2⇓ Recent data from focal lesion investigations have suggested that the frontal and the parietal lobes also are critical for time perception, especially for their role in attention and in maintaining the representation of subjective time in the working memory.3,4⇓ Neuropsychological and functional imaging studies have supported the importance of the prefrontal cortex in the perception and in the comparison of time intervals.5 We describe the case of a patient who had a selective impairment in the perception of events’ duration. A 49-year-old man reported mental confusion and difficulty with concentration. Neurologic examination showed very mild left hemiparesis that regressed in a few days. After this acute episode, …