Related articles: Korsakoff psychosis
Definition
Korsakoff's psychosis is a late complication of a Wernicke's encephalopathy, persistent and inadequately treated, which results in a neuronal and axonal degeneration. This syndrome is characterized by severe memory gaps, behavioral changes and muscle pain.
Korsakoff's psychosis is often related to severe chronic alcohol dependence and prolonged thiamine deficiency. Other causes include head trauma, subarachnoid hemorrhage, ischemic infarction and, less frequently, tumors affecting the thalamic region.
Most common symptoms and signs *
- Hallucinations
- Confabulation
- Muscle cramps
- Depression
- Difficulty concentrating
- Temporal and spatial disorientation
- Mood disorders
- Hand and wrist pain
- Euphoria
- Sore legs
- undernourishment
- hypovitaminosis
- Paresthesia
- Memory loss
- Loss of memories
- Confusional state
Further indications
Korsakoff's psychosis manifests itself with memory impairment, confusion, temporal disorientation and behavioral changes.
Short-term memory is severely impaired. Amnesia manifests itself in varying degrees, but patients tend to remember remote events rather than recent ones. The gaps in the memory are filled with false memories and imaginary or confused accounts (confabulations), which represent a product of the imagination of the patient suffering from Korsakoff's psychosis. This manifestation is often an initial feature of the syndrome.
Korsakoff's psychosis frequently causes apathy, sadness or mild euphoria, with little or no response to various events. Mental disorders are accompanied by violent pain and muscle paralysis, especially in the lower limbs (alcoholic polyneuritis).
Diagnosis is based on finding typical symptoms in patients with a history of chronic alcoholism. During the investigations, other possible causes must be excluded (eg lesions of the central nervous system or infections).
The treatment consists of thiamine administration and adequate hydration. Korsakoff syndrome can regress after several months (about 12-24 months from onset), only if the individual completely abstains from alcohol. The prognosis is good in patients suffering from head injury and / or subarachnoid hemorrhage, while it is unfavorable when the condition depends on alcoholism or a stroke.
