The patient’s memory loss from PCP use was common, but what was not common was the sudden retrieval of his lost memories of the murder he committed, after he sustained severe injuries from an accident (Sacks, 1985). The patient could, therefore, attempt to contain his potentially unpredictable behavior in conditions isolated from society (Sacks, 1985). In terms of treatment, the best possible approach for the patient at the time was to send him to a psychiatric hospital (Sacks, 1985). Sacks (1985) discussed attempts to treat the patient via hypnosis and sodium amytal but these served to no avail. The areas of the brain that could play a role in supporting these symptoms include the areas of the prefrontal cortex and the limbic system (e.g., amygdala) associated with the temporal lobe, and hence, memory. In this chapter, the patient’s first round of symptoms are described as an organic amnesia (he couldn’t remember the murder he committed) induced by the patient’s use of the drug PCP (Phencyclidine)-a sedative, hallucinogenic, and anesthetic (Sacks, 1985 Brust, 1993).
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