The characteristics of the attention networks impairment in patients with localized brain injury

Objective: To determine attention networks impairmnet in patients with localized brain injury and to examine the characteristics of the impairment. Methods: The attention network test was used to compare patients (n = 59) with controls (n = 53) on the efficiency of 3 anatomically defined attention networks; alerting, orienting, and executive control. Results: Firstly, patients with frontal lobe injury showed a significant deficit in the executive network (frontal lobe injury, controls: (143.7 ± 46.6), (91.6 ± 46.4) ms, Z = -4.714, P < 0.01) and also a significant deficit in the orienting network (frontal lobe injury, controls: (71.2 ± 35.2), (55.1 ± 21.8) ms, Z = -2.125, P < 0.05). There was no deficit in the alerting network (Z = -0.901, P > 0.05). Secondly, the orienting network effect was significantly lower in patients with parietal lobe injury ((34.9 ± 25.2) ms) than in normal controls ((55.1 ± 21.8) ms, Z = -2.418, P < 0.05). However, there were no significant differences between the other two networks and between the patients and the controls (Z = -1.873, -0.186, P > 0.05). Thirdly, patients with temporal lobe injury showed no deficit in the three networks (Z = -0.037, -1.224, -0.718, all P > 0.05) as well as in overall RT and accuracy (Z = -1.385, -0.699, all P > 0.05). Conclusions: These results suggest that there are selective impairments of the orienting and executive networks in patients with the frontal lobe and the parietal lobe injury, while the alerting network is spared. Furthermore, the frontal lobe plays a key role in the executive control, meanwhile, the orienting network is closely related with the parietal lobe.