The syndrome of transient epileptic amnesia
Zeman A., Butler C., Hodges J., Kapur N.
© Oxford University Press, 2013. Epilepsy reflects a disturbance of a fundamental aspect of brain function, the synchronized rhythmic activity of large populations of neurons. As human memory also depends upon the synchronized rhythmic activity of large populations of neurons, it should not be surprising that epilepsy is commonly associated with memory disturbance, nor that there is an intimate relationship between the brain mechanisms for memory in the medial temporal lobes (MTLs) and the pathogenesis of seizures. This chapter reviews what is known of the disruptive effects of a variety of seizure-types on memory, before focusing on a form of epilepsy of which, unusually, the main manifestation is amnesia.