Lateralizing value of the Wada memory test in non-Western patients with temporal lobe epilepsy

The Wada memory test measures a psychological construct (i.e. memory), which is widely acknowledged to be under the influence of a vast array of moderating variables including culture. Thus, the lateralizing value of the Wada memory test for epileptogenic foci may potentially differ for Western vers...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Epilepsy research 1999-02, Vol.33 (2), p.125-131
Main Authors: Kim, Hongkeun, Yi, Sangdoe, Kim, Jieun, Ik Son, Eun
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Dominance, Cerebral - physiology
Epilepsy surgery
Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe - ethnology
Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe - physiopathology
Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe - psychology
Ethnic Groups
Female
Headache. Facial pains. Syncopes. Epilepsia. Intracranial hypertension. Brain oedema. Cerebral palsy
Humans
Intracarotid amobarbital test
Korea - ethnology
Male
Medical sciences
Memory
Memory - physiology
Nervous system (semeiology, syndromes)
Neurology
Neuropsychological Tests
Wada test
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Summary:The Wada memory test measures a psychological construct (i.e. memory), which is widely acknowledged to be under the influence of a vast array of moderating variables including culture. Thus, the lateralizing value of the Wada memory test for epileptogenic foci may potentially differ for Western versus non-Western patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). In the present study, the lateralizing value of the Wada memory test was investigated in 17 Korean patients with medically intractable TLE who were post-operatively seizure-free. The Wada memory stimuli were composed of eight drawings of common objects, animals, and fruits. A clinical criterion of at least 2 points difference between left and right injections correctly classified 14 patients (82%) into left and right TLE groups, with only one patient (6%) falsely classified. This diagnostic accuracy is at least as high as that reported for Western TLE patients. These results indicate that whatever culture-specific factors Korean TLE patients may bring to the Wada memory test, they do not significantly reduce the lateralizing value of the test.
ISSN:0920-1211
1872-6844
DOI:10.1016/S0920-1211(98)00082-5