BRAIN AND COGNITION 33, 278–294 (1997) ARTICLE NO. BR970868 Thalamic Amnesia Following Venous Infarction: Evidence from a Single Case Study ANDREA PERU Dipartimento di Scienze Neurologiche e della Visione, Sezione Fisiologia, Universita ` di Verona, Verona, Italy AND FRANCO FABBRO Istituto di Fisiologia, Universita ` di Trieste, Trieste, Italy The present paper describes the case of a right-handed Italian–English bilingual male patient suffering from amnesia following a bilateral thalamic lesion due to venous infarction. Within a few months from the onset, the lesion gradually shrank and was finally confined to the left thalamus only, in particular to the antero-medial portion and the pulvinar. The mammillary bodies and the cortical areas of both hemispheres were spared. After the regression of a series of generalized cognitive deficits implying slow psychic activity, confusion, and spatial and temporal disorien- tation, the patient presented a persistent amnesic syndrome with mild language dis- orders, both in Italian and in English. Major disorders of memory included a dissoci- ation between verbal memory, which was severely impaired, and spatial memory, which was largely preserved.  1997 Academic Press INTRODUCTION Several different thalamic pathologies, such as chronic alcoholism, tu- mors, vascular disorders, and stereotaxic neurosurgical operations, may cause amnesia. Since lesions due to neoplastic formations or alcohol abuse are rarely confined to the thalamus only, most cases of pure thalamic amnesia We thank D.B. for his unwavering patience throughout testing; his wife for her generous cooperation; Drs. S. Aglioti, L. Chelazzi, and V. Daro’ for their helpful comments on the manuscript; and Dr. A. Beltramello for reviewing the magnetic resonance images. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Andrea Peru, Dipartimento di Scienze Neurologiche e della Visione, Sezione di Fisiologia, Universita ` di Verona, Strada le Grazie 8, I-37134 Ve- rona, Italy: Fax: +39-45-580881. E-mail: andrea@borgoroma.univr.it. 278 0278-2626/97 $25.00 Copyright  1997 by Academic Press All rights of reproduction in any form reserved.