Behavioral alterations with lesions of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
What are the behavioral alterations noted with lesions of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex ?
Dorsolateral prefrontal lesions are associated with
- depression and apathy,
- reduced verbal fluency (dominant side), reduced nonverbal fluency (nondominant side),
- psychomotor slowing,
- poor set shifting,
- impaired abstraction and logical thinking,
- inability to understand humor,
- poor judgment,
- poor response inhibition,
- impaired free recall and intact recognition memory,
- poor memory organization,
- poor temporal sequencing of events,
- poor visual construction strategies,
- poor working memory,
- reduced divided attention,
- reduced sustained attention,
- perseveration on sequential motor tasks,
- and environmental dependency
Verbal dysdecorum is disinhibited, poorly monitored verbal output that is socially unacceptable and is seen most frequently following damage on the right.
These behaviors occur after lesions of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, head of the caudate, globus pallidus, and mediodorsal/ventral anterior thalamus.
