atopognosia

9.9

A person who cannot tell where on their body they are touched

noun
/ˌætəpoʊɡˈnoʊziə/

Specialized

: atopognosia

People with atopognosia may find it difficult to identify where they have been touched.

Examples

The neurologist diagnosed the patient with atopognosia after several sensory tests.
Atopognosia can occur following damage to specific areas of the brain.
What is atopognosia?
He struggles with atopognosia.
The neurologist diagnosed the patient with atopognosia after examining their ability to perceive touch accurately.
People with atopognosia often cannot tell where they have been touched on their bodies during an examination.
Following a stroke, she experienced atopognosia, making it hard for her to locate the areas that were touched.

Synonyms

atopognosis

vsatopognosia

Specialized

9.9

Being unable to tell where on your body you are touched

describes the same inability without naming the neurological cause

Antonyms

touch perception

Specialized

1 4.5

Ability to feel pressure, heat, or pain on the skin

Surface Forms

atopognosia singular

atopognosias plural

Morphology

atopognosia = topognosia (opaque) = a + topo + gnosia

Built from Greek combining forms ('a-' 'topo-' '-gnosia') and used as a specialized medical term, so most learners cannot derive the meaning from the parts.

Etymology

Atopognosia comes from Greek parts: a- 'without', topo 'place', and gnosia 'knowledge'. So it literally means 'without knowledge of place', which explains why a person with this condition cannot tell where their body was touched.