My memories are important to me: changes in autobiographical memory in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Sharpley Hsieh; Muireann Irish; David Foxe; Jashelle Caga; Emma Devenney; Rebekah Ahmed; John R. Hodges; Olivier Piguet; Matthew C. Kiernan

doi:10.1037/neu0000291

My memories are important to me: changes in autobiographical memory in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Sharpley Hsieh^*, Muireann Irish, David Foxe, Jashelle Caga, Emma Devenney, Rebekah Ahmed, John R. Hodges, Olivier Piguet, Matthew C. Kiernan

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objective: The loss of autobiographical memories (ABM) is a pervasive feature of neurodegenerative diseases. Studies to date have not investigated ABM retrieval in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a multisystem disorder that may be associated with cognitive dysfunction and dementia.

Method: The integrity of autobiographical memory was evaluated in 22 ALS patients compared with 28 age-matched controls using the Autobiographical Interview (AI), a semistructured interview assessing autobiographical events from discrete time periods across the life span.

Results: ABM retrieval was preserved in ALS and remained rich in detail for personal events in recent (last 12-months) and remote (teenage years) time epochs. ABM retrieval was positively correlated with months since ALS symptom onset, with a greater number of contextual details being recalled as ALS progressed. A shift in how ABMs were perceived in ALS patients became apparent, with more recurrent reflection of recent life, which was also weighted with greater personal importance.

Conclusion: The preservation of ABM in ALS has clinical implications for the use of life review as a therapeutic tool in a multidisciplinary care setting.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	920-930
Number of pages	11
Journal	Neuropsychology
Volume	30
Issue number	8
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1037/neu0000291
Publication status	Published - 1 Nov 2016
Externally published	Yes

Keywords

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Autobiographical memory
Phenomenology

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title = "My memories are important to me: changes in autobiographical memory in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis",

abstract = "Objective: The loss of autobiographical memories (ABM) is a pervasive feature of neurodegenerative diseases. Studies to date have not investigated ABM retrieval in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a multisystem disorder that may be associated with cognitive dysfunction and dementia. Method: The integrity of autobiographical memory was evaluated in 22 ALS patients compared with 28 age-matched controls using the Autobiographical Interview (AI), a semistructured interview assessing autobiographical events from discrete time periods across the life span. Results: ABM retrieval was preserved in ALS and remained rich in detail for personal events in recent (last 12-months) and remote (teenage years) time epochs. ABM retrieval was positively correlated with months since ALS symptom onset, with a greater number of contextual details being recalled as ALS progressed. A shift in how ABMs were perceived in ALS patients became apparent, with more recurrent reflection of recent life, which was also weighted with greater personal importance. Conclusion: The preservation of ABM in ALS has clinical implications for the use of life review as a therapeutic tool in a multidisciplinary care setting.",

keywords = "Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Autobiographical memory, Phenomenology",

author = "Sharpley Hsieh and Muireann Irish and David Foxe and Jashelle Caga and Emma Devenney and Rebekah Ahmed and Hodges, {John R.} and Olivier Piguet and Kiernan, {Matthew C.}",

year = "2016",

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doi = "10.1037/neu0000291",

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volume = "30",

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journal = "Neuropsychology",

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T1 - My memories are important to me

T2 - changes in autobiographical memory in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

AU - Hsieh, Sharpley

AU - Irish, Muireann

AU - Foxe, David

AU - Caga, Jashelle

AU - Devenney, Emma

AU - Ahmed, Rebekah

AU - Hodges, John R.

AU - Piguet, Olivier

AU - Kiernan, Matthew C.

PY - 2016/11/1

Y1 - 2016/11/1

N2 - Objective: The loss of autobiographical memories (ABM) is a pervasive feature of neurodegenerative diseases. Studies to date have not investigated ABM retrieval in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a multisystem disorder that may be associated with cognitive dysfunction and dementia. Method: The integrity of autobiographical memory was evaluated in 22 ALS patients compared with 28 age-matched controls using the Autobiographical Interview (AI), a semistructured interview assessing autobiographical events from discrete time periods across the life span. Results: ABM retrieval was preserved in ALS and remained rich in detail for personal events in recent (last 12-months) and remote (teenage years) time epochs. ABM retrieval was positively correlated with months since ALS symptom onset, with a greater number of contextual details being recalled as ALS progressed. A shift in how ABMs were perceived in ALS patients became apparent, with more recurrent reflection of recent life, which was also weighted with greater personal importance. Conclusion: The preservation of ABM in ALS has clinical implications for the use of life review as a therapeutic tool in a multidisciplinary care setting.

AB - Objective: The loss of autobiographical memories (ABM) is a pervasive feature of neurodegenerative diseases. Studies to date have not investigated ABM retrieval in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a multisystem disorder that may be associated with cognitive dysfunction and dementia. Method: The integrity of autobiographical memory was evaluated in 22 ALS patients compared with 28 age-matched controls using the Autobiographical Interview (AI), a semistructured interview assessing autobiographical events from discrete time periods across the life span. Results: ABM retrieval was preserved in ALS and remained rich in detail for personal events in recent (last 12-months) and remote (teenage years) time epochs. ABM retrieval was positively correlated with months since ALS symptom onset, with a greater number of contextual details being recalled as ALS progressed. A shift in how ABMs were perceived in ALS patients became apparent, with more recurrent reflection of recent life, which was also weighted with greater personal importance. Conclusion: The preservation of ABM in ALS has clinical implications for the use of life review as a therapeutic tool in a multidisciplinary care setting.

KW - Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

KW - Autobiographical memory

KW - Phenomenology

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JO - Neuropsychology

JF - Neuropsychology

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My memories are important to me: changes in autobiographical memory in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

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Keywords

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