Friday, May 18, 2012

Alien Hand Syndrome

When I first read the title of this problem, I wasn't sure if it was referring to a physical human ailment or was a fancy colloquialism.  Apparently, it is the former.  It is when one's hand moves of its own volition; it is a movement completely independent of the sufferer's thoughts or controls.  They often say it feels like their hand is a foreign body.  Specific problems in the brain give rise to this phenomenon, such as a lesion on the corpus callosum or other brain tumors or following a traumatic brain injury.  The movement can be as simple as grasping for objects or more frightening as thrashing at clothes.

You can read more about this syndrome here:

Medicinenet: http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=12655

HowStuffWorks: http://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/unexplained-phenomena/alien-hand.htm


Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove suffered from Alien Hand Syndrome.  Who knew?






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