Gender-Specific Functional Cerebral Asymmetries and Unilateral Cerebral Lesion Sequelae

Abstract

The magnitude and direction of cerebral lateralization are thought to be sexually dimorphic. Numerous human studies indicate gender-specific differences in functional cerebral asymmetries (FCAs) for various functions. Females are thought to have a decreased magnitude of inter-hemispheric cortical lateralization compared with males, whereas males exhibit a greater degree of cortical asymmetry than females for components of cognitive and perceptual processing. Also, a large body of evidence has shown that FCAs fluctuate across the menstrual cycle, presumably as a result of cycle-related hormonal changes. Awareness of gender-based differences of the human brain may enable better understanding of differences in functional outcome between men and women after unilateral cerebral lesion.