… What Were We Talking About Again Amnesia… … What Were We Talking About Again Meg Kelly

What is Amnesia? Amnesia can apply to not only losing the ability to record and store new memories (anterograde) and information but also losing memories and past information (retrograde). Amnesia can be caused by a head injury, a brain tumor, a stroke, viral infection, short term loss of blood flow or oxygen to the brain, electroconvulsive therapy, alcohol abuse and severe traumatic events.

Symptoms of Amnesia For neurological amnesia when patients are being diagnosed Doctors will often look for… If the patient can or cannot form new memories If the patient can or cannot recall past events If imaginary memories or events that are told of fact (this is called confabulations) Uncoordinated movement and or tremors Confusion and disorientation Total/partial loss of memory Failure to recognize faces/places

Neurological Amnesia Neurological amnesia is when areas of the brain that create or store memories are damaged. Amnesia caused by a organic issue is when information cannot be passed through the neural pathways that are formed by memories. Neural pathways are formed by the nerves using the senses to send information to the brain, the information is then sorted into long and short term memories. (This is a extremely condensed version of the process.)

Psychogenic/Dissociative Amnesia The psychological cause of amnesia is when an experience is so traumatic (such as sexual/physical abuse in childhood or witnessing a murder as an adult) that the brain will temporarily block the ability to either form a memory of the event or block the ability to recall the even at all.

Anterograde Amnesia An individual suffering from Anterograde Amnesia often has the ability to remember past events though after the injury to the brain (usually the hippocampus region) the individual will have no ability to create new memories. The individual will usually still have their short term memory. This means that they can carry on an activity and know what they’re doing though the minute they are distracted from it there is no memory of ever doing the task.

Retrograde Amnesia Retrograde Amnesia can be thought of as the opposite of Anterograde Amnesia. The sufferer will usually have difficulty remembering or have no ability remembering their past memories or activities. Though after the even which is the cause of the amnesia new memories can be formed normally.

Other forms of Amnesia Transient Global Amnesia- temporary loss of all memory. It is more difficult to form new memories rather than remembering older memories. Wernike-Korsakoff’s psychosis- a progressive form of amnesia which is onset by severe alcohol abuse (though it can also be caused my severe malnutrition). Hysterical (fugue) Amnesia- the patient not only loses their past memories but their identity. This can be onset by a severe traumatic event; the patients memory can slowly or suddenly return to them, though it is possible it never returns at all.

Treating Amnesia For those suffering from Anterograde Amnesia therapy is used to help the patient build certain habits as well as creating and remembering new memories. Some patients use journals and electronic devices that allow them to store information that is relevant to them. Therapy also works on having the patient develop habits so that they can have some normalcy to their life. Habits can often stick with the patient unconsciously after being done several times.

Bibliography Memory Disorders Project at Rutgers Univeristy (memorylossonline.com) What is Amnesia?- Medical News Today Anterograde Amnesia- SimplyPyschology.org How Amnesia Works- Howstuffworks.com