Contralateral gaze deviation with supratentorial hemorrhage.

Three patients with spontaneous supratentorial intracerebral hemorrhage had contralateral sustained conjugate gaze deviation. The autopsies disclosed large thalamic-basal ganglia hemorrhages whose caudal extension was limited to the midbrain. Current knowledge of oculomotor localization does not adequately explain this "wrong-side" gaze deviation, and the mechanism remains obscure. The present cases suggest that thalamic hemorrhage can produce contralateral gaze deviation without involving postdecussation horizontal oculomotor pathways. Contralateral gaze deviation is not a rare occurrence with deep supratentorial hemorrhages, and awareness of this confusing sign should assist in localizing intracerebral hematomas.