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Autoscopic phenomena – review of studies and case report

Agnieszka Pawełczyk1, Natalia Żurner-Szymańska2, Tomasz Pawełczyk1, Jolanta Rabe-Jabłońska1

Affiliacja i adres do korespondencji
PSYCHIATR. PSYCHOL. KLIN. 2012, 12 (3), p. 193-198
Streszczenie

Autoscopic phenomena are defined as seeing one’s body in space, from internal perspective (as in a mirror) or from external point of view. They have different pictures, therefore they have been presently classified to the groups of: “being out of the body”, heautoscopy, and autoscopic hallucinations. “Being out of the body” is defined as an impression of seeing the world and one’s own body at a distance, from an enhanced visual-spatial perspective, autoscopic hallucinations are described as seeing one’s double in space out of one’s body but without a sense of having left the body, and heautoscopy – as seeing oneself in space out of one’s body but with difficulty in specifying where “experiencing of one’s self” and “one’s own centre of awareness” are located. The analysis of neurophysiological and neuroimaging data associated with experiencing autoscopy implies the presence of disturbances in integration of information flowing from the atrial system and other receptors (visual, proprioceptive, and tactile receptors). Neuroimaging studies indicated also participation of prefrontal, parietal and temporal cortices associated with a higher level of processing the information about oneself. These deficits are most probably associated with damages in temporoparietal junctions and in neuronal junction networks in various regions of the cerebral cortex, including prefrontal, parietal and temporal regions. Apart from the review of literature, the article presents a case of the patient who had the central nervous system’s hypoxia due to haemorrhagic shock. Because of his cerebral hypoxia the patient exhibited heautoscopic sensations and was close to death. The authors describe his experiences containing many elements repeated in accounts of people in a similar somatic condition. The final part of the article presents possible causes of their occurrence.

Słowa kluczowe
autoscopic phenomena, hypoxia, temporoparietal junction, corporal awareness