title: Transient improvement in sensorimotor conversion during post-anoxic encephalopathy with bilateral medial temporal ischemia.
abstract: We report the case of a patient with sensorimotor conversion that improved transiently during post-anoxic medial temporal ischemia inducing anterograde and retrograde amnesia. Symptoms reappeared in parallel with mnesic recovery. This case raises a hypothesis concerning the role of hippocampi and amygdalae, which are involved in emotionally-associated memory. The amnesia may have modified the patient's "self," giving her a "distant" point of view. Another hypothesis is that cerebral anoxic stress may have "reset" the cerebral network that controls behavior. These findings give clues about the mechanisms of somatoform disorder and highlight the possibility of specific therapeutic strategies to induce cognitive reappraisal of emotionally-associated experiences.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Neurology , University Hospital of Besançon , Besançon , France.
authors.forename: Eloi
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Magnin
authors.forename: Yavor
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Delchev
authors.forename: Gilles
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chopard
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Berger
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vandel
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sechter
authors.forename: Lucien
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rumbach
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Haffen
mesh_terms: D000648:Amnesia, Retrograde / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D003291:Conversion Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D002534:Hypoxia, Brain / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests