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How can be best explain retrograde amnesia in human memory disorder?
1Wessex Neurological Centre, Southampton General Hospital, UK.
Memory (Hove, England)
|January 1, 1997
Summary
Retrograde amnesia, particularly autobiographical amnesia after head injury, may stem from widespread brain damage. This damage disrupts the distributed cognitive network essential for recalling personal memories.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neurology
Background:
- Retrograde amnesia presents challenges in understanding memory loss.
- Autobiographical amnesia is a significant symptom in severe head injuries.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review hypotheses explaining retrograde amnesia.
- To propose a theory for dense autobiographical amnesia.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing hypotheses on retrograde amnesia.
- Outline of a novel theory for autobiographical amnesia.
Main Results:
- Three primary hypotheses for retrograde amnesia are discussed.
- A theory is presented linking autobiographical amnesia to distributed network pathology.
Conclusions:
- Autobiographical retrieval relies on a distributed network of cognitive functions.
- Pathology across multiple brain areas and time points explains severe autobiographical amnesia.