Amnesia MRI

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1] Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Zehra Malik, M.B.B.S[2]

Head MRI may be helpful in the diagnosis of the cause of amnesia in some cases including, Alzheimer’s disease, or brain trauma. In majority of the cases of amnesia the brain appears normal on MRI.

• Psychogenic amnesia is defined by the lack of structural damage to the brain, but upon functional imaging, abnormal brain activity can be seen. Tests using functional magnetic resonance imaging suggest that patients with psychogenic amnesia are unable to retrieve emotional memories normally during the amnesic period, suggesting that changes in the limbic functions are related to the symptoms of psychogenic amnesia.^[1]
• In transient epileptic amnesia MRI is usually normal. However, in some patients frontal and temporal lobe abnormalities have been observed.^[2]
• Brain MRI findings suggestive of Alzheimer’s disease include, reduction in hippocampal volume and atrophy of medial temporal lobe ^{[3] [4] [5]}

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