Memory/Amnesia Flashcards
Role of hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus?
Declarative memory (facts)
On the way to the airport, 58 yo F begins to behave in a strange way. Husband notices when he talks to her she answers appropriately with fluent speech but seems to have no ability to retain new information. Episode lasts 6 hrs. Following day she didn’t remember what had happened. Dx?
Transient global amnesia
Characteristic of OH- induced blackouts?
Anterograde amnesia for a time while heavily intoxicated but awake
What characterizes the memory loss in pts with dissociative amnesia?
Episodic
Example of declarative memory
Retention and recall of facts
Pt with hx of HSV and seizure d/o undergoing EEG monitoring that recorded no epileptic activity during, after, and before a confused state wherein pt suddenly awoke fraightened. The next day pt with baseline demeanor has no memory about that episode.
Amnestic disorder
61 yo pt presents to ED with family who report that the pt is unable to remember recent events. Memory problems started 2 hrs ago; cognitively intact before. Pt is alert, anxious, frustrated. Why am I in the hospital? Dx?
Transient global amnesia
Presentation of transient global amnesia?
Acute memory problems
What is the brains structure associated with high global cognitive performance in aging?
Hippocampal formation
Region of the frontal lobe most closely associated with working memory?
Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
Patient in 30s develops cognitive difficulties and can only name 9 words starting with letter P but can name 12 animals in 1 minute. Findings suggest?
Frontal lobe injury
How can you distinguish memory impairments in Alz vs dementia?
Can remember with cues in depression
What is significant risk factor for developing Alz in a patient with mild cognitive impairment?
Hypertension
A 72 yo develops suffer onset memory loss. She didn’t know how she and her spouse arrived at the supermarket. The spouse noted that she could drive without issues but appeared nervous. The patient was able to answer questions but forgot the conversation and returned to baseline. Dx?
Transient global amnesia
A surgeon unable to describe anatomical parts involved in one of his common surgeries is experiencing what type of memory impairment?
Semantic
Injury of bilateral parahippocampal cortex and formation results in what
Amnesia
55 yo brought to ED disheveled and behaving strange, stares blankly and is mute. Doesn’t know who they are and all studies are negative. Has a vague memory of “walking away from something horrible’. Dx?
Dissociative amnesia
A 40 yo pt is hospitalized for evaluation of fever, weight loss, and ataxia. Depressed and with progressive memory loss over several months. Which of the following lab tests may help explain the pt’s presentation
HIV
2 months after severe brain injury, pt opens the eyes for prolonged periods but remains inattentive, does not speak, and shows no signs of awareness of the environment or inner need. Pt is capable of some rudimentary behaviors such as following a simple command, gesturing, or producing single words or brief phrases, always in an inconsistent way from one exam to another. Which of the following is the most accurate description of the pt’s condition?
Minimally conscious state
Memory loss pattern in dissociative amnesia?
Occurs for a discrete period of time
Amnesia characterized by loss of memory of events, occurs after onset of etiologic condition or agent
Anterograde
What psychoactive drug produces amnesia?
Alcohol
55 yo pt BIB family after episode of amnesia/bewilderment lasting several hrs. CVA rule out. Pt keeps asking what is happening. What med to administer at this point?
Observation only
Which of the following diagnoses involves a sense of loss of identity, often following a traumatic experience and associated with inability to recall one’s past?
Dissociative fugue
65 yo pt lives alone, increasingly forgetful over the past year, lifelong difficulty recalling names of acquaintances, now has difficulty with phone calls and remembering appts. Lives independently, drives, prepares meals, MSE with delayed recall of 4 words, otherwise normal. Pt upset by difficulty and is not depressed. Sx most consistent with?
Amnestic mild cognitive impairment.
45 yo with nystagmus and ataxia, short term memory loss and believes his wife is possessed by demons. Most appropriate treatment?
Thiamine
A conscious memory that covers for another memory that is too painful to hold in the consciousness is
Screen memory
In pts with pronounced defects in recent memory, remote memory is
Often deficient on close examination even when it seems well preserved
“My father was very involved in my life. I remember going to football games in the snow with him” is an example of memory associated with what part of the brain?
Medial temporal lobe
Working memory requires prefrontal cortex, dorsal thalamus and what other area of the brain to function?
Hippocampus
Asking a pt what the pt ate for breakfast yesterday tests
Recent memory
Question to evaluate immediate recall?
Can you repeat these 6 numbers?
Asking pt to remember 3 things and repeat them in a few minutes is testing?
Short term memory
34 yo pt with hx of memory impairment dies of unknown cause for autopsy. Pathological exam: diffuse and multifocal rarefaction of cerebral white matter accompanied by scanty perivascular infiltrates of lymphocytes and clusters of a few foamy macrophages, microglial nodules, and multinucleate giant cells. Dx?
HIX- associated dementia.
Pt brought to ED by family b/c concert for pts ability to recognize them since TBI one month ago. Pt had LOC after trauma. Tenderness and swelling over L temporal area. Neuro exam normal. Pt knows his own name, but is unable to ID family members or events related to family. Dx?
Dissociative amnesia
Which test correlates most strongly with pre-morbid functioning in pt with early dementia
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale IV Vocabulary Test (WAIS IV)
Neuropsychological test most useful in the early dx of Alz
10-Item word list learning task
Disorder with degeneration of mammillary bodies and dorsal nucleus of thalamus
Wenicke-Korsakoff syndrome
