[Back to the past. Case report and review on retrograde memory loss].

Retrograde memory loss where many years disappear suddenly from memory is a known but rare form of memory disturbance among young and old subjects. For those whose brain is affected by a known organic damage such as head trauma the time lost from memory is usually not counted in years, but typically hours or sometimes days or weeks. We review in this article current knowledge on retrograde memory loss as we describe the experience of a 31 year old woman who experienced an unusually long form of retrograde amnesia. She developed the memory loss in the wake of disappointment and a life event. At the time she had major depression. Having described the case and presented the results of neuropsychological testing, we associate her story with the state of knowledge on retrograde memory loss.