He was an active baby boomer, halfway on the journey from 50 to 60. When he stood in the middle of the kitchen and asked his wife where his vitamins were, she thought he was joking. When he wanted to know where he worked and looked confused, she realized he was serious.
For patients who suffer from transient global amnesia (TGA), sudden and temporary memory loss is as puzzling as it is shocking. According to the Mayo Clinic, many of them draw a blank when asked to recall events from even the previous day. Sometimes they can’t remember where they are or how on earth they managed to get there. They do, however, know exactly who they are and are able to recognize people they know well.
TGA is a rare condition that tends to occur as a single but frightening episode. The patient’s memory is back to normal afterward. The condition is identified mainly by its primary symptom, the inability to put down any new memories and to recall things from the recent past. To make a definitive diagnosis, doctors must first rule out other types of amnesia as potential culprits for the faulty memory.
Transient global amnesia patients can recognize and name familiar objects and people and can follow simple directions. They lack damage to any particular part of the brain. The TGA episode lasts 24 hours or less and is followed by a gradual return of the patient’s normal memory. Patients have no history of epilepsy or a recent head injury.
Additional symptoms sometimes include headache, nausea, vomiting and dizziness. The patient might experience either chills or flushing. Some report a sensation of pins and needles or cold hands and feet. They can experience a fear of dying or other powerful emotion.
Trembling, sweating or having chest or neck pain is not uncommon. An individual can also have a visual disturbance or a racing heartbeat.
On average, symptoms last only six hours. Once an episode has passed, patients remember nothing that occurred during the memory impairment. Sometimes they also have no recollection of the period of several hours prior to the episode.
Unfortunately, it’s difficult to diagnose transient global amnesia because of other life-threatening conditions that can also trigger sudden memory loss. The top contenders are strokes and seizures.
However, medical professionals have been able to track some TGA episodes to specific events. The most common are a sudden immersion in hot or cold water, taxing physical activity, sexual intercourse, medical procedures like angiography or endoscopy and acute emotional distress.
The sex of the patient apparently plays no role in determining risk. A history of migraines, however, means an elevated risk for developing TGA. So does being age 50 or older.
Individuals who have experienced TGA symptoms should be examined by a doctor if for no other reason than to rule out more serious conditions. Since getting help quickly is important, an emergency room visit or a call to 911 might be the best way to get an evaluation.
To determine the extent of memory loss, the doctor performing the exam will check the patient’s knowledge of general information such as the name of the current President of the United States. Another technique is testing the ability to recall a random set of words.
The physician might order brain imaging tests such as an electroencephalogram (EEG), or a computerized tomography (CT) scan or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). There is no established treatment, as the condition resolves on its own. Since the cause of TGA remains elusive and recurrence is rare, the medical community currently has no standard protocol for preventing it.
Reference:
- Mayo Clinic web site
