[Lateralization of the epileptic process and psychology]

In a group of 70 patients with a unilateral epileptic process in the temporal limbic structures, localized in the left half of the brain in 38 patients (26 men, 12 women) and in the right half of the brain in 32 patients (17 men, 15 women) the lateralization of motor functions, asymmetry of emotional mimicry, conjugated deviation of the eye bulbs, intellect, memory, psychomotor rate and personality (laterality test of Matĕjcek--Zlab, Wechsler's intellect and memory scale, Benton, Stroop, VAROS, SUPOS, DSF, Washington Psychosocial--Seizure Inventory WPSI was investigated. Patient with a left-sided epileptic process had only insignificantly lower contact with psychiatry (31.6% as compared with 40.6%). Significantly lower contacts with psychiatry were recorded in 35 patients with a predominance of emotional mimicry (while smiling) on the left (25.0% as compared with 47.1%, p less than 0.05) and particularly significantly low in 18 patients with a combination of signs left-sided epileptic process + predominance of emotional mimicry on the left + deviation of the eyeballs on the right (mathematical stimulus) + genotypical righthandedness (16.7% as compared with 42.3%, p less than 0.025). Men with a left-sided epileptic process displayed a significantly greater anxiety, in women this trend was only indicated. Four women with a left-sided epileptic process anticipating regulation of behaviour was typical, for women with a right-sided epileptic process lower autoregulating inhibitions. A left-sided epileptic process had significantly more often a favourable course of epilepsy (in 65.8% as compared with 25.0%, p less than 0.005). In psychological tests, however, the differentiating criteria were much more than the course of the disease invalid pension, contact with psychiatry and subjective need of assistance from a psychiatrist or psychologist.