Scientists Explain the Case of a Man Who Survived a Gunshot to the Head, Awakening in an Upside-Down World
Neuroscientist Justo Gonzalo Rodríguez-Leal (1910-1986) conducted research on a strange man whose brain damage caused his perspective of the world to be inverted.
The man’s case is referred to as “Patient M”, with his identity kept confidential.
Justo Gonzalo, known as the father of brain dynamics theory, made significant contributions to the foundation of modern neuroscience through his studies on “Patient M.”
Recently, his daughter, Professor Isabel Gonzalo from Complutense University of Madrid (Spain), revisited her father’s notes while researching this unusual man.
She presented a new study revealing the unique neural mechanisms at play.
Workers performing tasks upside down as perceived by Patient M. (Image: Pixabay).
In 1938, a soldier (then 25 years old) in the Republican Army of Spain was shot in the head while on duty at the battlefield.
Despite the severity of the injury, doctors found no need for surgery, as the soldier miraculously recovered “within days of treatment.”
Upon waking, he observed the world in an inverted manner.
“Patient M” is considered a unique historical case, serving as a living testament at the time to the brain’s extraordinary capacity for recovery after life-threatening trauma.
Unusual Aftereffects
Clinical examinations conducted by Justo Gonzalo revealed that the soldier experienced a significant reduction in his visual field in both eyes.
Specifically, his vision became disconnected from color, as colors appeared to be literally detached from objects.
The patient also suffered from central chromatic aberration, causing him to perceive life predominantly tinted in green.
Notably, various abnormalities were discovered in the veteran’s vision; he lost his sense of motion and had an inverted visual perception.
In his view, people and objects seemed to be opposite to their actual positions, and he could read letters and numbers both normally and upside down.
Additionally, Patient M’s auditory and tactile perceptions were also inverted, resulting in sounds and sensations appearing in opposite directions in his mind.
For instance, sounds emanating from his right ear would be perceived in his left ear.
Nevertheless, despite these impacts on his vision and hearing, the veteran was still able to perform daily tasks like anyone else.
Experts believe that this remarkable functional recovery is a result of the brain’s unconscious adaptation to changes caused by the injuries.
Brain Adaptation
From his observations and research, Justo Gonzalo discovered that the consequences of cortical damage depend on two main factors: location and severity.
These factors disrupt and affect the level of brain function.
Depending on the injury’s location, the scientist identified three distinct cortical syndromes: central, mid, and peripheral.
- Central cortical syndrome is characterized by a condition of multisensory processing involving bilateral and symmetrical vision, touch, and hearing. It encompasses a set of dynamic phenomena related to changes in neural excitability.
- Mid syndrome is similar to central syndrome but manifests with asymmetric effects.
- Peripheral syndrome leads to disturbances in spatial projections and sensations.
Thus, inverted perception results from an integrative process caused by this syndrome.
Much deeper clinical observations have supported Justo Gonzalo’s brain dynamics theory, which today forms the basis of numerous studies in neuroscience.
Moreover, it also illustrates the brain’s adaptability when faced with injuries, allowing patients not to completely lose related functions.
Isabel Gonzalo’s research was published in the journal Neurologia.
