[Dysphagia] Lost Dreams May Show Stuff Dreams Are Made Of

[bonnieh4455 at sbcglobal.net (Bonnie Heintskill)]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=594&ncid=594&e=13&u=/nm/2004
0910/hl_nm/science_dreams_dc

A stroke that robbed a woman of her dreams may help pinpoint where and how
dreams are born in the brain, scientists said on Friday.

They found the stroke had damaged areas deep in the back half of the brain,
which is involved in the visual processing of faces and landmarks. ..

These results describe for the first time in detail the extent of lesion
necessary to produce loss of dreaming in the absence of other neurological
deficits. As such, they offer a target for further study of the localization
of dreaming," added Bassetti, who led the study.

The 73-year-old woman also lost some of her vision, Bassetti and colleagues
reported.

That came back but then her dreams disappeared.

They studied the patient's brain waves as she slept and found no disruptions
in her sleep cycle.

The woman has recovered some ability to dream, but they are less vivid, the
researchers said.

"Further conclusions about this brain area and its role in dreams will
require more studies analyzing dream changes in patients with brain damage,"
said Bassetti.