Memory enhancement in Korsakoff's psychosis by clonidine: Further evidence for a noradrenergic deficit

Three drugs, d‐amphetamine, clonidine, and methysergide, which presumably enhance central noradrenergic activity by different pharmacological mechanisms, were administered to eight patients with the Korsakoff syndrome in a two‐week subacute, double‐blind, counterbalanced experiment to study the effects of these agents on memory function as measured by a neuropsychological test battery. Of the drugs tested, only clonidine, a putative alphanoradrenergic agonist, was associated with significant improvement in memory. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that damage to ascending norepinephrine‐containing neurons in the brainstem and diencephalon may be the basis for amnesia in Korsakoff's psychosis.

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