DISRUPTION OF AUTOMATIC SPEECH FOLLOWING A RIGHT BASAL GANGLIA LESION

Following a right basal ganglia lesion, a right-handed man, age 75, wa s unable to recite familiar verses. Serial automatic speech, singing, recitation of rhymes, and swearing were impaired, and only idioms and social greetings were preserved. Speech no longer contained overused p hrases and he could comprehend automatic speech. In contrast, proposit ional speech was preserved in both French and Hebrew. Right basal gang lia lesions may impair production but not comprehension of automatic s peech.