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A Psychophysical Method for Assessing Visual and Acoustic Hyperesthesia in Patients with Mild Head Injury

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

N. Bohnen ,
A. Twijnstra ,
J. Kroeze  and
J. Jolles
N. Bohnen*
Affiliation:
Department of Neuropsychology & Psychobiology, University of Limburg, PO Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands
A. Twijnstra
Affiliation:
Department of Neurology, University Hospital of Maastricht
J. Kroeze
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Psychology, University of Utrecht, The Netherlands
J. Jolles
Affiliation:
University of Limburg, Maastricht
*
∗Correspondence
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Abstract

Although it is well known that patients with mild head injury (MHI) are less able to endure intense light and sound stimuli than normal people, there are few psychophysical studies that have objectively measured this type of hyperaesthesia. In the present study, using a computerised rating scale technique, both the maximal and submaximal levels of reduced tolerance to light and sound were assessed for a wide range of stimuli. Three to six days after the trauma, 40 MHI patients were significantly less tolerant to stimuli of intensities over 71 dB and 500 lux levels than controls. These intensities are common, and MHI patients may suffer as a consequence.

Type
Brief Reports
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 159 , Issue 6 , December 1991 , pp. 860 - 863
Copyright
Copyright © 1991 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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