Retrospective analysis of cases of transient global amnesia admitted to the hospital

Abstract

Introduction. Transient global amnesia (TGA) is a clinical syndrome, the main clinical manifestation of which is sudden development of anterograde and retrograde amnesia, lasting not more than 24 hours, without other general cerebral or focal neurological symptoms.The aim of the work was to reveal the peculiarities of clinical manifestations and data of additional methods of examination of patients with TGA syndrome referred to the primary vascular department with suspected acute cerebral circulation disorder (ACCD).Materials and methods. The study included 16 patients with transient global amnesia diagnosed according to the diagnostic criteria of Hodges and Warlow (1990). All patients underwent a detailed neurological and general medical examination. Electrocardiography, multispiral computer tomography of the head, echocardiography, ultrasound duplex scanning of the main arteries of the head and neck, laboratory examination (lipid spectrum) were performed. The Brief Mental Status Rating Scale was used to assess cognitive impairment.Results. The majority of patients had elevated blood pressure (BP). The leading trigger factor of transient global amnesia was stress. The duration of amnesia ranged from 1.5 to 5 hours. There was a significant impairment of short-term memory. On the first and second days of hospitalization, 50% of patients had normal cognitive functions on a brief mental status assessment scale, but by the 5th−7th day only 12.5 % of patients had abnormalities. Ultrasound markers of atherosclerosis in the form of intima-media complex thickening and dyslipidemia were found in 6 patients. Signs of left ventricular hypertrophy were found in the majority of patients. Discussion TGA is a relatively rare condition and an understudied syndrome. Due to its suddenness of clinical manifestation, TGA requires differential diagnostics with acute cerebral circulatory disorders, epilepsy, acute hypertensive encephalopathy and psychogenic amnesia.Conclusion. The clinical features of TGA identified in the patients were a history of arterial hypertension, elevated BP during an episode of TGA. The leading provoking factor was stress. TGA episode occurred predominantly in the first half of the day. The majority of patients had complaints of headache on admission. Cognitive disorders detected in patients on the first and second days of the disease quickly regressed to normal. Left ventricular hypertrophy was detected in most patients.