| Diffuse brain damage underlies akinetic mutism in | | | | disrupted the patient's spatial attention network such |
| patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. It can also | | | | that right visual neglect and anosognosia resulted. |
| occur in a stroke that affects both anterior cerebral | | | | Causes of Akinetic Mutism |
| territories. Other locations for lesions producing | | | | Common Causes and Risk factors of Akinetic Mutism: |
| akinetic mutism include the thalami, globus pallidus, | | | | Olfactory groove meningioma. |
| internal capsule, and frontal white matter. These | | | | Bilateral infiltration of the fornix. |
| lesions are thought to disrupt anterior frontal | | | | Environmental.factors |
| subcortical circuits that subserve motivation. In our | | | | Biological.factors |
| patient, the syndrome of akinetic mutism appears to | | | | Interpersonal factors |
| be the result of a lesion in the body of the cingulate | | | | Anxiety. |
| gyrus in one hemisphere in combination with the | | | | Signs and Symptoms of Akinetic Mutism |
| extension of the stroke into the body of the corpus | | | | Common Sign and Symptoms of Akinetic Mutism |
| callosum, effectively disconnecting the functional | | | | Whispering speech. |
| contralateral cingulate gyrus. In effect, this unilateral | | | | Demetia. |
| lesion disrupted bilateral pathways that are necessary | | | | Ataxia. |
| in order to sustain normal motivation. The | | | | Behavioral disturbance. |
| involvement of bilateral callosal fibers in the regions of | | | | Seizures. |
| the anterior cingulate may also explain the profound | | | | Treatment for Akinetic Mutism |
| hemineglect that emerged as the akinetic mutism | | | | Common Treatment of Akinetic Mutism |
| improved. The anterior cingulate cortex is part of a | | | | Treatment of akinetic mutism with bromocriptine. |
| bihemispheric network of cortical, subcortical, and | | | | Behavior modification therapy is also helpful for |
| white matter structures that are involved in | | | | akinetic mutism. |
| attention, including spatial attention. The left cingulate | | | | Antidepressant medication such as , amphotericin B |
| lesion and callosal disconnection may have sufficiently | | | | and zolpidem. |