Alien Hand Syndrome: A Case Report Decoding the Enigmatic Limb

Abstract

Alien Hand Syndrome (AHS) is a rare condition characterised by involuntary hand movements occurring without the patient’s intention. While AHS has various causes, it is frequently associated with ischemic stroke, post-corpus callosotomy, degenerative conditions, and has more recently been observed in cortico-basal degeneration. This case report highlights a 62-year-old male patient experiencing involuntary movement in his right hand three days after admission with an ischemic stroke involving the left fronto-parietal lobe and corpus callosum. The predominant symptoms included compulsive groping, inter-manual conflict, and hemi-anaesthesia in his right hand. The callosal subtype arises from corpus callosum damage and often involves inter-manual conflict. However, callosal infarction is uncommon due to the abundant blood supply. This case report describes a case of AHS caused by callosal infarction, confirmed through magnetic resonance imaging, specifically showing infarction in the left corpus callosum. The patient exhibited symptoms consistent with the anterior variant based on radiographic findings. However, features of the posterior variant were also observed.

Keywords

• autonomous hand
• callosal stroke
• cortico-basal syndrome
• dr. strangelove syndrome
• involuntary movements