Korsakov's psychosis

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Definition

Noun: A specific form of dementia, also known as Korsakoff syndrome, primarily observed as a consequence of severe, chronic alcoholism and severe thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency. Its core feature is a profound memory disorder, particularly an inability to form new memories (anterograde amnesia) while often preserving remote, long-term memories. Confabulation—the unconscious fabrication of stories or events to fill memory gaps—is a common characteristic.

Usage Examples
  • The neurologist diagnosed the patient with Korsakov's psychosis after years of alcohol abuse and nutritional neglect.
  • A key symptom of Korsakov's psychosis is severe short-term memory loss, where a patient may repeat the same question minutes after receiving an answer.
  • Treatment for Korsakov's psychosis involves immediate thiamine replacement and complete abstinence from alcohol.
Advanced Usage
  • The term is often used in clinical and neuropsychological contexts to describe the chronic, amnestic-confabulatory stage following Wernicke's encephalopathy, together forming Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome.
  • While "psychosis" is part of the historical name, the condition is more accurately characterized as an amnestic disorder rather than a primary psychotic illness.
Variants and Related Words
  • Korsakoff's syndrome (n): The more modern and commonly used term, synonymous with Korsakov's psychosis.
  • Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome (n): The full name for the disorder, encompassing both the acute phase (Wernicke's encephalopathy) and the chronic phase (Korsakoff's psychosis/syndrome).
  • Alcohol amnestic disorder (n): A descriptive term used in some diagnostic classifications.
Synonyms
  • Korsakoff syndrome
  • Alcohol-induced persisting amnestic disorder
  • Amnestic-confabulatory syndrome
Related Phrases
  • Nutritional dementia: A broader category that includes Korsakov's psychosis as a prime example resulting from vitamin deficiency.
  • Anterograde amnesia: The specific type of memory impairment central to the condition.
Noun
  1. dementia observed during the last stages of severe chronic alcoholism; involves loss of memory for recent events although long term memory is intact

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