What term describes an inability to remember events after a head injury?

• A. Anterograde amnesia
• B. Retrograde amnesia
• C. Epidural hematoma
• D. Concussion

Answer: (A)

Anterograde amnesia is the term for an inability to form new long-term memories after a head injury. After the injury, new information isn’t encoded into lasting memory, so the person can recall events from before the injury but cannot remember things that happen after it. This occurs because memory encoding processes—often involving the hippocampus and surrounding structures—are disrupted. In contrast, retrograde amnesia is the loss of memories formed before the injury, with the ability to form new memories typically remaining intact. Epidural hematoma is a bleeding event between the skull and dura that can cause brain pressure and damage, not a memory disorder. A concussion is a mild brain injury that can cause temporary confusion and memory gaps, but the specific term for difficulty remembering events after the injury is anterograde amnesia.