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Cited by 37Memory and Neural MechanismsMemory Processes and InfluencesNeurobiology of Language and Bilingualism

Remembering and forgetting of semantic knowledge in amnesia: a 16-year follow-up investigation of RFR

McCarthy, Rosaleen A., Kopelman, Michael D., Warrington, Elizabeth K.·2005·Neuropsychologia
DOI 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2004.06.024
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Abstract

We report our long-term follow-up investigations of RFR, a post-encephalitic case of very grave anterograde and retrograde amnesia. We also describe the results of quantitative neuroimaging of his brain injury that showed bilateral and severe reduction in the hippocampal formation and medial temporal structures with sparing of left lateral/posterior and right posterior temporal cortex. We established that RFR had a persistent severe anterograde and retrograde amnesia for personal and public events. His personal semantic knowledge was relatively spared for the retrograde period. There was a modest and global reduction in RFR's vocabulary for words acquired in adulthood before he became amnesic but there was no evidence of any retrograde gradient. His retrograde knowledge of people was also without any gradient. Remarkably, there had been no change in the extent of his semantic knowledge across a prolonged re-test interval indicating that the loss of semantic knowledge was stable and likely to have arisen at the time of his initial lesion. RFR also showed evidence of a limited but significant ability to acquire new word meanings and a more restricted capacity for learning about new celebrities. While he was able to demonstrate face and name familiarity for newly famous people, he was unable to provide much semantic detail. RFR's amnesia can be partially explained by contemporary theories that allow for parallel cortical and hippocampal memory systems but is difficult to reconcile in detail with any extant view.

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  • A few HSV-1 patients followed longitudinally over long periods display persistent severe anterograde and retrograde amnesia, with relatively preserved remote memories, the hallmark of bilateral hippocampal lesions.

    “A few patients followed longitudinally over long periods [39–46], display persistent severe anterograde and retrograde amnesia, with relatively preserved remote memories, the hallmark of bilateral hippocampal lesions.”

    From Cognitive decline following acute viral infections: literature review and projections for post-COVID-19 (2022) · cites this paper as [41]

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Authors
McCarthy, R. A., Kopelman, M. D., & Warrington, E. K.
Affiliations
  • University of Cambridge (GB)
  • King's College London (GB)
  • National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (GB)
Corresponding author
McCarthy, Rosaleen A.
ORCID
Kopelman, Michael D.
Venue
Neuropsychologia
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2005-01
Volume
43
Issue
3
Pages
356-372
ISSN
0028-3932 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2004.06.024
OpenAlex
W2047752356
Cited by
37
References
72
Citations by year
2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 2 · 2021: 1 · 2019: 1 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 2 · 2012: 2
FWCI
0.67
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Neuropsychologia (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • ePrints Soton (University of Southampton) (submittedVersion)
  • Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory Processes and Influences
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
Keywords
anterograde amnesia, retrograde amnesia, semantic memory, long-term follow-up, hippocampal formation, medial temporal lobe, vocabulary acquisition, memory systems
MeSH terms
Aged, Amnesia, Cerebral Cortex, Famous Persons, Follow-Up Studies, Hippocampus, Humans, Male, Memory, Semantics, Severity of Illness Index, Knowledge, Encephalitis, Herpes Simplex, Recognition, Psychology

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