Memory loss is not equal to loss of dream experience: A clinicoanatomical study of dreaming in patients with posterior brain lesions.

Abstract

This paper examines the role of the posterior brain in the functional architecture of dreaming, and the controversy surrounding dream cessation caused by memory failure. Eight patients with posterior brain lesions were assessed on a daily basis, using neuropsychological assessment, and morning sleep and dream interviews. It was found that the sole nondreaming patient was no more impaired in memory than the 7 patients who retained their dreaming capacity. Based on these findings, the author puts forward two arguments: (1) There is a clear distinction between memory deficits and cessation of dreaming. The inability to recall dreams and the loss of dream experience are rare in stroke patients, although memory disorders are not. (2) Unilateral lesions to the supramarginal gyrus and its adjacent areas do not necessarily lead to cessation of dreaming. In addition, the author discusses the neuropsychoanalytic implications of the findings.