Retrograde vs Anterograde

Losing one’s memory is a common plot device among writers. The condition keeps the plot interesting. It keeps the story moving. It adds another color to the well constructed spectrum of words. But then again, it’s not just losing memory; it’s more of what was missing that makes it a successful plot device.

Have you ever noticed that there’s the difference, ever time though? In the movie The Vow, Paige Collins has no recollection of her husband, Leo, after a car accident. Is it different from what Lucy Whitmore from 50 First Dates?

There are generally two types of amnesia and both characters are examples for each of the type. Paige suffers from Retrograde Amnesia (RA). Retro- means backward. This type of memory-loss is attributed to losing memory to events that occurred or information that was learned bef0re an injury or an onset of a disease. This is the most common type of amnesia in pop culture.

Lucy suffers from Anterograde Amnesia (AA) (to keep it accurate, she actually suffers from a fictitious illness called Goldfield’s Syndrome, which is, according to the movie, a type of Anterograde Amnesia). Antro- means forward. This type of amnesia is attributed to a loss of the ability to create new memories after the event that caused the amnesia.

Both types of amnesia can be caused by trauma to the head, specifically damage to the hippocampus or its surrounding cortices. This is due to the hippocampus is the one in charge of memory consolidation – establishing a trace of a memory after its acquisition.

The causes of RA are under investigation, but it’s commonly associated with traumatic brain injuries, as stated above. It can also be caused by nutritional deficiencies, infections, and even surgery. There is also a case with the controlled induction of the amnesia, in the form of Electroconvulsive therapy. It is used as a type of depression therapy.

The other cause of AA is the use of benzodiazepine drugs – a type of psychoactive drug which are known to have powerful amnesiac effects. Alcohol intoxication is also another cause, commonly known as blackout. Illness, though much rarer, can also cause AA if it causes encephalitis, which is the inflammation of brain tissue.

Despite the stark difference, a person can both have both Retrograde and Anterograde amnesia. The illness is called Transient Global Amnesia (TGA). TGA is the sudden onset of AA and RA caused by a traumatic event, however it is short lived, typically lasting only 4 to 8 hours.

RA has a chance of recovery. But just because one can recover from RA, it doesn’t mean it’s easy. When someone is suffering from RA, their memory cannot be recovered from simply being told personal experiences and their identity. Fortunately, memory can be and usually is recovered due to spontaneous recovery.

However, sufferers from AA cannot recover. It is due to the fact that people suffering from AA cannot encode the experiences they have into long term. By contrast, lost memories in AA sufferers never come back, probably because they were never properly formed in the first place.

Despite the two women suffering from two different kinds of amnesia, it is still commendable how they handled their situations. And wasn’t the last part of 50 First Dates sweet? Going beyond our two examples, is the ‘soul’ of the person lost when they suffer from RA/AA? And do you agree with spontaneous recovery? Let me know in the comments!

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