Balint syndrome (psychic paralysis of visual fixation syndrome)

General: Bilateral lesion of parietooccipital region; rare occurrence; affected patients are unaware of objects otherwise familiar to the 535d35f m.

Ocular: Psychic paralysis of visual fixation; lack of full voluntary control of eye movements; unstable visual fixation.

Clinical: Tonic and motor phenomena of upper limbs; loss of body coordination (bilateral); optic ataxia; it has been reported to occur in association with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) encephalitis and with presenile-onset cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy.

Balint R. Seelenlahmung des Schauens, optische Ataxie, Raumliche Storung der Aufmerksamkeit. Monatsschr Psychiatr Neurol 1909; 25:51.

Cogan DG, Adams RD. A type of paralysis of conjugate Gaze (ocular motor apraxia). Arch Ophthalmol 1964; 71:489.

Damasio AR. Disorders of complex visual processing: agnosias, achromatopsia, Balint's syndrome, and related difficulties of orientation and construction. In: Mesulan M-M, eds. Principles of Behavioral Neurology. Philadelphia: FA Davis, 1985:259-262.

Gottlieb D, et al. Reappearance of the visual percept after intentional blinking in a patient with Balint's syndrome. J Clin Neuro-Ophthalmol 1991; 11:62-65.

Magalini SI, Scrascia E. Dictionary of Medical Syndromes, 2nd ed. Philadelphia: JB Lippincott, 1981.

Schnider A, et al. Balint's syndrome in subacute HIV encephalitis. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1991; 54:822-825.

Uyama E, et al. Presenile-onset cerebral adrenoleukodystrophy presenting as Balint's syndrome and dementia. Neurology 1992; 43:1249-l251.