The first comprehensive case study of early-emerging prosopometamorphopsia.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Perceptual Psychology
• Clinical Neurology

Background:

• Prosopometamorphopsia (PMO) is a rare perceptual disorder.
• Facial distortions are a key characteristic of PMO.
• Early-onset cases of PMO are not well-documented.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct the first thorough study of an early-emerging case of Prosopometamorphopsia (PMO).
• To investigate the manifestations, co-occurring disorders, and neural correlates of lifelong PMO.

Main Methods:

• Case study of an individual with lifelong Prosopometamorphopsia (PMO).
• Behavioral assessments of facial distortions and identity recognition.
• Neuropsychological testing for face-processing abilities.
• Structural MRI and diffusion tensor imaging for neural correlates.

Main Results:

• The participant experienced dynamic, lifelong facial distortions and identity misrecognitions.
• Distortions were consistent across various viewing conditions.
• Face identity recognition deficits were observed, but accurate age and sex judgments were possible.
• Reduced face-selectivity in posterior areas and lower white matter integrity in the left inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus were found.

Conclusions:

• This case provides novel insights into early-emerging Prosopometamorphopsia (PMO).
• It highlights the co-occurrence of PMO with other face-processing deficits.
• It identifies potential underlying neural mechanisms, including white matter abnormalities.