Has anyone ever seen The Addams Family and was introduced to Thing? The hand that runs around with a mind and life of its own. Alien Hand Syndrome (AHS) is nowhere near as extreme, but Hollywood made it known to the public to make as many fictional cases as there are real. The disorder is also known as Dr. Strangelove syndrome from the movie, Dr. Strangelove. Alien Hand Syndrome was discovered in 1905 with only 40 to 50 recorded cases since and can be defined as a rare brain disorder in which one of the upper limbs operates involuntarily without the person knowing it.
With a normal functioning brain, the corpus callosum communicates effectively in sending messages with nerves that connect the left and right hemispheres. In AHS, the wiring between the two hemispheres is not connected correctly. This can be caused by an aneurysm, a serious brain surgery for epilepsy, stroke, tumors, infections in the mind, or just one hemisphere being damaged. After developing AHS the patient does not lose all feeling in that hand but they do feel disassociated to it and can even claim the hand is not theirs. Some of the minor symptoms can include unconscious reaching, grasping, or touching at the face. Some of the extreme symptoms can incorporate preventing the hand from completing simple tasks like drinking out of a cup or self-inflicting harm such …show more content…
The neurotransmitters that seem to be affected for a physical sense are Acetylcholine (ACh), Dopamine, and GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid). All of these transmitters seem to be affected because they all somehow deal with either muscle movement and/or communication between nerves. Some neurotransmitters I believe could be affected emotionally from developing AHS are Dopamine and Serotonin because they affect moods in the brain. These people that have Alien Hand Syndrome can be embarrassed by their unknown actions and leave the patient depressed or alone
With a normal functioning brain, the corpus callosum communicates effectively in sending messages with nerves that connect the left and right hemispheres. In AHS, the wiring between the two hemispheres is not connected correctly. This can be caused by an aneurysm, a serious brain surgery for epilepsy, stroke, tumors, infections in the mind, or just one hemisphere being damaged. After developing AHS the patient does not lose all feeling in that hand but they do feel disassociated to it and can even claim the hand is not theirs. Some of the minor symptoms can include unconscious reaching, grasping, or touching at the face. Some of the extreme symptoms can incorporate preventing the hand from completing simple tasks like drinking out of a cup or self-inflicting harm such …show more content…
The neurotransmitters that seem to be affected for a physical sense are Acetylcholine (ACh), Dopamine, and GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid). All of these transmitters seem to be affected because they all somehow deal with either muscle movement and/or communication between nerves. Some neurotransmitters I believe could be affected emotionally from developing AHS are Dopamine and Serotonin because they affect moods in the brain. These people that have Alien Hand Syndrome can be embarrassed by their unknown actions and leave the patient depressed or alone