A Case of Prosopometamorphopsia Restricted to the Nose and Mouth with Right Medial Temporooccipital Lobe Infarction that Included the Fusiform Face Area

• Published in: Journal of clinical neurology (Seoul, Korea) Vol. 8; no. 4; pp. 311 - 313
• Main Authors: Hwang, Jung Yun, Ha, Sang Won, Cho, Eun Kyoung, Han, Jeong Ho, Lee, Seon Hwa, Lee, Seung Yeon, Kim, Doo Eung
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) Korean Neurological Association 01.12.2012; 대한신경과학회
• Subjects: Case Report; 신경과학; face perception; fusiform face area; prosopometamorphopsia
• ISSN: 1738-6586; 2005-5013
• DOI: 10.3988/jcn.2012.8.4.311

Metamorphopsia includes a broad spectrum of visual perceptual distortions, such as alteration of perceived object size or, rarely, altered perception of faces, termed prosopometamorphopsia. This report describes a patient who complained of metamorphopsia restricted to the center of the face, particularly the lower part of the face (nose and mouth), following infarction of the right medial temporooccipital lobe that included the fusiform face area. The fusiform face area is commonly believed to be a face-selective cortical region dedicated to the visual analysis of face stimuli. We speculate that any injury to this brain area could bring about prosopometamorphopsia involving whole or unilateral face perception, or very rarely, as in our case, distortion restricted to the central area of the face. Furthermore, there could be topographical correspondences between facial structures and the fusiform face area.