Sex differences in visuospatial function following right hemisphere cerebrovascular accident

This study focused on sex differences in visuospatial performance in (a) a neurologically intact sample and (b) a sample of right hemisphere stroke patients, as well as (c) differences between the two groups. Forty right hemisphere stroke patients and 40 neurologically intact control subjects were examined. Both groups were equally divided by sex. Subjects with dementia, confusional states, or neglect syndromes or visual field defects that would have compromised visuospatial performance were excluded. The test battery consisted of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (CFT); the WAIS-R Block Design subtest; the Judgment of Line Orientation Test; Raven\u27s Coloured Progressive Matrices (CPM), Sets A and B; and the Hooper Visual Organization Test. Analyses focused on both overall score on each measure and process components of performance. Significant differences favoring the control group compared to the stroke group were obtained with ANCOVAs, using education and WAIS-R Similarities subtest Age-Scaled Score as covariates due to control group superiority on these variables, on the Overall Accuracy Score (p $\u3c$.001) and the Missing Units measure (p $\u3c$.01) of the CFT; Raw Score (p $\u3c$.01) and designs solved within the strictest time limits (p $\u3c$.001) and when standard time limits were extended (p $\u3c$.01) on the WAIS-R Block Design subtest; Set B (p $\u3c$.05) of the Raven\u27s CPM; the Test of Judgment of Line Orientation (p $\u3c$.001); and the Hooper Visual Organization Test (p $\u3c$.01). Only one significant difference was obtained between the male and female control groups, that being a male superiority on the Test of Judgment of Line Orientation (p $\u3c$.05). Significant differences favoring the male stroke group compared to the female stroke group were obtained with ANCOVAs, using age and education as covariates due to the male stroke group being younger and better educated than the female stroke group, on Overall Accuracy Score on the CFT (p $\u3c$.05), designs solved when standard time limits were extended on the WAIS-R Block Design subtest (p $\u3c$.01), and the Test of Judgment of Line Orientation (p $\u3c$.001). These results offer tentative support for a male superiority on pure measures of visuospatial functioning and a sex difference in the functional organization of the human brain