NINDS Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome Information Page

Synonym(s):   Korsakoff's Amnesic Syndrome, Cerebral Beriberi

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What is Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome?

Wernicke's encephalopathy is a degenerative brain disorder caused by the lack of thiamine (vitamin B1). It may result from alcohol abuse, dietary deficiencies, prolonged vomiting, eating disorders, or the effects of chemotherapy. Symptoms include mental confusion, vision impairment, stupor, coma, hypothermia, hypotension, and ataxia. Korsakoff's amnesic syndrome-a memory disorder-also results from a deficiency of thiamine, and is associated with alcoholism. The heart, vascular, and nervous system are involved. Symptoms include amnesia, confabulation, attention deficit, disorientation, and vision impairment. The main features of Korsakoff's amnesic syndrome are the impairments in acquiring new information or establishing new memories, and in retrieving previous memories. Although Wernicke's and Korsakoff's may appear to be two different disorders, they are generally considered to be different stages of the same disorder, which is called Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome. Wernicke's encephalopathy represents the "acute" phase of the disorder, and Korsakoff's amnesic syndrome represents the "chronic" phase.

Is there any treatment?

What is the prognosis?

What research is being done?

NIH Patient Recruitment for Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome Clinical Trials

• At NIH Clinical Center
• Throughout the U.S. and Worldwide

Organizations

Family Caregiver Alliance/ National Center on Caregiving 180 Montgomery Street Suite 1100 San Francisco, CA   94104 info@caregiver.org http://www.caregiver.org Tel: 415-434-3388 800-445-8106 Fax: 415-434-3508

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) National Institutes of Health, DHHS 5635 Fishers Lane, MSC 9304 Bethesda, MD   20892-9304 http://www.niaaa.nih.gov Tel: 301-443-3860

Prepared by:
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National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
National Institutes of Health
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Last updated February 14, 2007