Differential impairments in recalling people's names: a case study in search of neuroanatomical correlates

Neuropsychologia. 1997 May;35(5):677-84. doi: 10.1016/s0028-3932(96)00120-0.

Abstract

The case of a patient with selective left hemispheric medial and lateral temporal lobe damage is described. The patient was of slightly supra-average intelligence and had no problems in normal memory functions, but was severely anomic with respect to people's names. One month post-onset, this deficit held for names of colleagues and friends she had gotten to know during the last 10 years prior to the infarct and for all names confronted with post-infarct. On the other hand, learning of face-name associations was preserved and was independent of the ability to generate context-specific information for the subjects whose names were requested. The results support the existence of category-specific naming impairments, and, moreover, indicate a deficit that has to be differentiated with regard to memory systems. A time-limited, but prolonged engagement of interconnected left medial and adjacent lateral temporal lobe structures in ecphory is stressed for context-restricted information such as proper names.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anomia / diagnosis
  • Anomia / physiopathology*
  • Anomia / psychology
  • Brain Damage, Chronic / diagnosis
  • Brain Damage, Chronic / physiopathology*
  • Brain Damage, Chronic / psychology
  • Brain Mapping
  • Cerebral Infarction / diagnosis
  • Cerebral Infarction / physiopathology
  • Cerebral Infarction / psychology
  • Dominance, Cerebral / physiology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Mental Recall / physiology*
  • Middle Aged
  • Names
  • Occipital Lobe / physiopathology
  • Retention, Psychology
  • Temporal Lobe / physiopathology*