Acute cognitive disorders Flashcards
What is antegrade amnesia?
Memory loss in which new memories can’t be formed
What is retrograde amnesia?
Memory loss in which past events can’t be recalled
What are some causes of focal brain injury?
- Brain insults
- Examples: viral encephalitis, head injury, stroke
What are some examples of acute cognitive disorders?
Focal injury
Transient global amnesia
Transient epileptic amnesia
What is transient global amnesia?
A neurological disorder whose key defining characteristic is a temporary but almost total disruption of short-term memory with a range of problems accessing older memories
What are some possible triggers of transient global amnesia?
Emotion
Change in temperature
How will transient global amnesia present?
- Abrupt onset antegrade > retrograde amnesia (repetitive)
- Preserved knowledge of self
- Transient 4-6 hours (always less than 24hrs)
What is transient epileptic amnesia?
A rare but probably under-diagnosed neurological condition which manifests as relatively brief and generally recurring episodes of amnesia caused by underlying temporal lobe epilepsy
How does transient epileptic amnesia present?
- Forgetful/repetitive questioning
- Can carry out complex activities with no recollection of events
- Short lived
How is transient epileptic amnesia managed?
Response to anti-epileptic medication should be seen