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Memory enhancement in Korsakoff's psychosis by clonidine: Further evidence for a noradrenergic deficit
Author(s) -
McEntee William J.,
Mair Robert G.
Publication year - 1980
Publication title -
annals of neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.764
H-Index - 296
eISSN - 1531-8249
pISSN - 0364-5134
DOI - 10.1002/ana.410070513
Subject(s) - clonidine , amnesia , norepinephrine , psychology , amphetamine , psychosis , neuropsychology , locus coeruleus , diencephalon , anesthesia , neuroscience , agonist , medicine , psychiatry , central nervous system , dopamine , receptor , cognition
Three drugs, d ‐amphetamine, clonidine, and methysergide, which presumably enhance central noradrenergic activity by different pharmacological mechanisms, were administered to eight patients with the Korsakoff syndrome in a two‐week subacute, double‐blind, counterbalanced experiment to study the effects of these agents on memory function as measured by a neuropsychological test battery. Of the drugs tested, only clonidine, a putative alphanoradrenergic agonist, was associated with significant improvement in memory. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that damage to ascending norepinephrine‐containing neurons in the brainstem and diencephalon may be the basis for amnesia in Korsakoff's psychosis.