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This WisdomCard managed by: Tara Salamone

Amnesia occurs quite rarely in real life, unlike many movie and television plots. A temporary episode of memory loss is called transient global amnesia, while other amnesias can be permanent.

Fast Facts

• --Because the functions of memory involve many areas of the brain, a brain injury or disease can potentially interfere with the mechanics of memory.

• --Another rare form of amnesia is known as psychogenic or dissociative amnesia. This kind of amnesia happens when a person has been through a violent or emotional trauma. A person can lose personal memories from a few hours to much longer.

• --There is currently no medication available for amnesia. Treatment focuses on techniques and therapies to help the person learn new information and ways to help them with organizing information and improving memory of conversation.

5 Great Resources on Amnesia

• Mayo Clinic: Amnesia | Transient Global Amnesia
• eMedicine: Transient Global Amnesia | Delirium, Dementia, and Amnesia
• A.D.A.M. (via MedlinePlus): Memory Loss
• Wikipedia: Amnesia | Anterograde Amnesia
• Better Health Channel: Amnesia

What is Amnesia?

• At Health: Amnesia
• University of Iowa Health Care: Amnesia
• About.com: Amnesia
• Johns Hopkins Medicine: Amnesia
• Merriam-Webster: Amnesia

What Are The Symptoms of Amnesia?

• Baptist Memorial Health Care: Amnesia
• Mayo Clinic: Amnesia: Signs and Symptoms
• WrongDiagnosis: Signs of Amnesia
• iVillage Total Health: Signs and Symptoms of Amnesia
• CureResearch: Symptoms of Amnesia

What Are The Causes and Complications of Amnesia?

• Mayo Clinic: Amnesia: Causes
• WrongDiagnosis: Causes of Amnesia
• A.D.A.M. (via MedlinePlus): Memory Loss Considerations & Causes
• iVillage Total Health: Potential Causes of Amnesia
• Merck Manuals: Amnesias
• U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA): What Can Cause Memory Loss?
• Aetna InteliHealth: Reversible Causes Of Memory Change

What Are The Treatments and Medications for Amnesia?

• Mayo Clinic: Amnesia: Treatment
• WrongDiagnosis: Treatments for Amnesia
• iVillage Total Health: Treatment Options for Amnesia
• eMedicine: Delirium, Dementia, and Amnesia: Treatment
• The New York Memory Services: Drugs currently available for the treatment of memory loss

What Are The Holistic and Alternative Treatments for Amnesia?

• A.D.A.M. (via MedlinePlus): Memory Loss Home Care

What Are The Types of Amnesia?

• A Healthy Me: Three General Types of Amnesia
• Life Extension: Amnesia and Memory Loss
• Cleveland Clinic (via WebMD): Mental Health: Dissociative Amnesia
• Healthwise (via WebMD): Confusion, Memory Loss, and Altered Alertness
• About.com: Blackouts - Retrograde Amnesia
• Wikipedia: Types of Amnesia

How Do You Prevent Amnesia?

• A Healthy Me: Amnesia Prevention
• Mayo Clinic: Amnesia: Prevention
• Answers.com: Amnesia: Prevention
• FDA: Can Memory Loss Be Prevented?
• Mayo Clinic: Memory improvement: Exercise keeps your mind sharp

Wisdom, Personal Experiences and Blogs about Amnesia

• The New Yorker: The Abyss: Music and Amnesia
• Wikipedia: Clive Wearing
• YouTube Video: Man without a memory - Clive Wearing
• Reader's Digest: Forget Me Not
• Small World - Big Possibilities: Not Only in the Movies: A Real Life Encounter with Amnesia
• The People's Pharmacy: Are Cholesterol Drugs Linked to Memory Loss?
• HubPages: 9 Years Memory Loss - Can Anyone Relate To This?

Message Boards, Chat and Discussions about Amnesia

• DailyStrength: Amnesia Support Group
• MD Junction: Amnesia Online Support Group
• Yahoo Groups: DissociativeDisorder
• Psych Forums: Dissociative Amnesia Forum
• Yahoo Answers: Can Valium cause amnesia?

Scientific and Medical Journal Articles on Amnesia

• PubMed: Amnesia Articles
• PubMed: Make love to forget: two cases of transient global amnesia triggered by sexual intercourse.
• JAMA: Amnesia Articles
• Google Scholar: Amnesia Articles

Clinical Trials on Amnesia

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Amnesia Studies

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• Coma and Post-Traumatic Amnesia
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• Dementia
• Memory Loss
• Alzheimer's Related Depression

User Recommended Links for Amnesia

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