EMOTIONAL SEQUELAE OF STROKE - A LONGITUDINAL PERSPECTIVE

This study investigated emotional change following stroke at acute (2- week), 2-month, and 6-month time intervals. Five dimensions of emotion al functioning were examined in a sample of 19 stroke subjects: indiff erence, inappropriateness, depression, mania, and pragnosia (a defect in the pragmatics of social communicative style). Results showed that, at the 2-month point, differential recovery rates become apparent dep ending on hemispheric side of the stroke lesion. Increased indifferenc e, inappropriateness, and depression appear to account for these resul ts and suggest a slower rate of recovery on these variables in the lef t hemisphere group (LH n = 9) compared to the right (RH n = 10). Resul ts further indicate that, at the 6-month point, emotional functioning in RH subjects appears to worsen. In contrast, emotional recovery in L H subjects seems to stabilize at this lime. Clinical implications of t hese findings in terms of type and timing of intervention are discusse d.