Developmental Gerstmann Syndrome

Synonyms

Developmental right parietal syndrome; Nonverbal disorders of learning; Nonverbal learning disability; Right hemisphere Impairment/Disorder

Short Description or Definition

Developmental Gerstmann syndrome (Gerstmann’s syndrome) is a rare disorder that has been infrequently described in the literature. The descriptions focus on four “classic” deficits: difficulty writing (dysgraphia or agraphia), difficulty with arithmetic (dyscalculia or acalculia), an inability to distinguish left from right, and difficulty identifying fingers (finger agnosia). Constructional dyspraxia, an inability to copy simple figures, is often included as a fifth symptom. The cause is not known, but over the last 10 years, studies using advanced imaging techniques have reported the deficits to be associated with posterior inferior parietal lesions located on the left side of the brain (Miller & Hynd, 2004).

Characterization

Fewer than 25 cases have been reported in the literature and, in the last 15...