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An out-of-body experience was repeatedly elicited during stimulation of the posterior part of the superior temporal gyrus on the right side in a patient in whom electrodes had been implanted to suppress tinnitus. Positron-emission tomographic scanning showed brain activation at the temporoparietal junction — more specifically, at the angular–supramarginal gyrus junction and the superior temporal gyrus–sulcus on the right side. Activation was also noted at the right precuneus and posterior thalamus, extending into the superior vermis. We suggest that activation of these regions is the neural correlate of the disembodiment that is part of the out-of-body experience.
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From the Department of Neurosurgery and Ear, Nose, and Throat, University Hospital Antwerp, Antwerp University, Antwerp, Belgium (D.D.R., T.M., P.V.H.); and the Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital Leuven, Leuven, Belgium (K.V.L., P.D.).
Address reprint requests to Dr. De Ridder at the Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital Antwerp, Wilrijkstraat 10, 2650 Edegem, Belgium, or at dirk.de.ridder{at}neurosurgery.be.
Related Letters:
Visualizing Out-of-Body Experience in the Brain
Tai Y. F., Greyson B., Parnia S., Fenwick P., De Ridder D., Van Laere K., van de Heyning P.
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N Engl J Med 2008;
358:855-856, Feb 21, 2008.
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