Memory impairment in patients with progressive supranuclear palsy

Verbal memory was compared in 12 patients with progressive supranuclear palsy and 12 healthy control subjects matched for age, sex, and education. Learning, consolidation, and retrieval were significantly impaired in patients with progressive supranuclear palsy. Information scanning, which requires the use of short-term memory processes, remained intact. Duration of symptoms and degree of motor dysfunction correlated with intrusions during learning. No relation between central dopamine metabolism and memory dysfunction could be established.