Assessment of central auditory dysfunction: the dichotic digit test revisited.

A dichotic digit test was administered to 21 subjects with intracranial lesions. Twelve subjects had lesions limited to the cortex and nine had brain stem disorders. The dichotic digit test appeared to be a sensitive measure for detecting cortex and brain stem lesions. Laterality data indicated markedly reduced performance for the ear contralateral to the hemispheric lesion. Overall results were similar to previous reports on dichotic digits, supporting the use of this test as a screening procedure or part of a test battery for CNS evaluation.