Charcot–Wilbrand syndrome

The Charcot- Wilbrand syndrome (CWS ) denotes dream loss due to localized brain damage. The name goes back to Jean -Martin Charcot (1825-1893) and Hermann Wilbrand (1851-1935), described the 1883 or 1887 patients, the ability to dream and to remember dreams, had lost.

Causes

Frequent cause of the CWS is a brain injury in the area of the occipital lobe, eg due to an ischemic stroke. Since this area of ​​the brain containing the visual center, performs a tissue damage in this area to a disturbance of visual stimulus processing. Possible consequences include:

• Total loss of vision ( Anopsie )
• Loss of color vision ( achromatopsia )
• To detect loss of ability to faces and objects ( visual agnosia, psychic blindness )
• Charcot- Wilbrand syndrome.

Course

Depending on the extent of tissue damage these neurological deficits may be reversible. It is reported by patients who have gained their sight after a few days, but in which the loss dream lasted for several months and then the dreams began gradually again.

Others

A dream loss as in Charcot- Wilbrand syndrome is not necessarily associated with the absence of REM sleep. While dreaming and REM sleep often occur simultaneously, but their triggers may independently.