We present a case of a male in his early 50s assessed in the emergency department with a seemingly clear alcohol history but with classic symptoms of Wernicke's encephalopathy (WE): disorientation, gait ataxia and vertical nystagmus. He also had significant bilateral hearing loss and profound anterograde amnesia. Neuroimaging revealed hallmark signs of WE, including symmetrical T2/fluid-attenuated inversion recovery hyperintensity in the medial thalami. Here, we consider important differentials...

OBJECTIVES: Wernicke encephalopathy (WE) is an acute neuropsychiatric disorder caused by thiamine deficiency. The classical triad of symptoms for WE include mental status changes, ataxia, and ophthalmoplegia. In contrast, more uncommon symptoms include hallucinations. Known risk factors include alcoholism, malignancies, and chronic kidney disease, particularly hemodialysis. However, WE in nonalcoholic adults is often overlooked.

Wernicke's encephalopathy, the acute phase of Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, is characterised as a triad of altered mental status, ocular signs and ataxia. Our patient presented with hyperemesis gravidarum, which is a rare aetiology of Wernicke's encephalopathy. The patient did not have any oculomotor abnormalities, which are more common and classically described in Wernicke's triad. The sudden visual loss in both eyes can be attributed to acute optic neuropathy. Our case highlights a unique...

ABSTRACT: Apathy is a quantitative reduction of goal-directed activity, which can be observed in relation to behavior, cognition, emotions and social interaction. It is an invalidating behavioral symptom that is frequently present across different psychiatric conditions and neurocognitive disorders including Korsakoff's Syndrome (KS). In fact, apathy is one of the most severe behavioral symptoms of KS and has a major impact on the lives of patients and their relatives and other informal...