Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome: symptoms and causes

Dreams, mental manifestations that occur while we sleep and that, although it has been shown that they are associated with a reworking of memory information and emotions, many enigmas and mysteries are still harbored.

Better or worse, dreams play an essential role in our mental health. So what would happen if we stopped dreaming? A similar phenomenon occurs with Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome., which we will talk about throughout this article.

• You may be interested in: "10 curiosities about dreams revealed by science"

What is Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome?

Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome is a rare neurological condition in which the person who suffers from it you experience the feeling that you have lost the ability to dream. However, what really happens is that the patient suffers from a visual agnosia accompanied by the loss of the ability to mentally remember or recover images in the mind; since according to studies the processes of REM sleep remain intact.

During the time we are asleep, the activity of our brain goes through five different phases. The last of these, known as

REM sleep phase (translated as Rapid Eye Movement) is characterized by intense brain activity. Thanks to this activity we can dream and our brain is able to capture information from our environment even though we are asleep.

Although at first glance it may appear that Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome is caused by some type of anomaly in the brain activity of this phase, the truth is that the studies point to the idea that, in reality, a lesion in the occipital lobe It may be the main genesis of this sleep disorder or disorder.

The name given to this condition is due to the case studies carried out by the neurologist Jean Martin Charcot and ophthalmology researcher Hermann Wilbrand. Although they worked separately, each of them made important contributions to the study of this syndrome.

As for Charcot's investigations, they contributed to determine that the main manifestation of the syndrome takes place in the lack of the ability to remember the images produced in dreams. Which implies the discovery that the person can dream, but is unable to remember it. As for Wilbrand's contribution, it revolves around the discovery of the presence of agnosias as possible side conditions.

Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome is considered a rare condition since it has a very low incidence among the population. Despite the fact that this implies a lack of studies investigating it, it has been recognized as a condition related to focal brain damage.

Its possible negative effects

Although patients with this syndrome do not tend to have a serious clinical picture or detrimental effects from the clinical picture, it is hypothesized that dreams favor some relatively important functions for the mental health of the person. Among these benefits is the ability of dreams to promote learning processes.

In the same way, it has been postulated that a complete loss of the ability to dream, or in this case to remember what dreamed, can be linked to the development of obsessive states and even to the suffering of a certain type of hallucinations. Finally, some theories establish that dreams help emotional development and preservation, and that the expression of emotions in dreams can enhance or help the expression of emotions in reality.

What symptoms does it present?

There are two different classifications that include the symptoms of Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome.. The first of these is based on the studies carried out by the syndrome researchers themselves described above. While the second classification, much more current, is based on the type of injury that causes it and on the analysis of the REM sleep of the patients.

1. traditional classification

Following the first studies, the symptoms of Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome were reduced to the following symptoms:

• Visual reminiscence problems.
• prosopagnosia.
• Topographical agnosia.

2. modern classification

However, the most recent studies describe the clinical picture of this syndrome based on the type of lesion and the evaluation of the REM sleep of the patients. These case studies performed by performing tests such as polysomnography, which studies multiple sleep parameters, accompanied by the determination of patterns in sleep stages.

In conclusion, the new definition of Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome symptoms is specified as an association between the loss of the ability to evoke images or visual memories that is translated or manifested as a loss of dreams.

What are the causes?

In those patients who experience a loss of visual images during sleep, it has been possible to identify a series of lesions due to early thrombosis, hemorrhage, trauma or carbon monoxide poisoning, which is why they establish as possible causes of the syndrome of Charcot-Wilbrand.

In addition, other conditions or conditions that have a more gradual development, such as the appearance of tumor masses in brain tissue or abnormal embryonic development of the corpus callosum have also been associated with this syndrome. In addition, cases of Charcot-Williams have also been found among some patients with Alzheimer's disease and Turner syndrome.

Regarding the location of brain lesions, the damages are located more frequently in the lateral or mesial (middle) occipitotemporal areas of the brain and almost always bilaterally. However, at the moment it has not been possible to find a more exact or precise location.

Treatment and prognosis

Due to the nature of this condition, there is still no definite or effective treatment for Charcot-Wilbrand syndrome. Nevertheless, there have been cases in which a gradual recovery occurs the ability to recall dreams.

Although the exact cause of recovery has not yet been determined, it will depend on the severity of the brain damage as well as the main cause of the disease. Depending on these factors, the patient may experience full, partial recovery, or no remission of symptoms.