Pervasive Healthcare Services and Technologies for Memory Loss Diseases Support

Definition Of Memory Loss

Many studies have been made by neuroscientists in order to analyse the structure of human memory, to assign how many kinds of memory there are, and how the brain selects, stores and retrieves information in each memory’s part. In general, memory divided into three parts:

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  Immediate or working memory which refers to the structures and processes used for temporarily storing and manipulating information. The Immediate memory includes information about the current task such as the name of a person you met moments ago or a phone number just to place the call.

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  Short-term memory for holding in mind information of the recent past. This memory’s part refers to memories which last for a few minutes such as events that happened in several seconds or minutes ago, and what you ate for breakfast.

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  Long-term memory can record the remote past. It is the part which contains everything we know about the world, semantic information as well as autobiographical experience, and memories of childhood (Familydoctor.org Editorial Staff, 2006).

Each memory part can be affected by different reason and can lead us in memory loss.

Memory loss disease can appear after brain damage due to physical trauma or disease, as well as, due to emotional trauma. Memory loss can affect memories partially or totally, slowly or suddenly, temporary or permanent. Anything that affects cognition - the process of thinking, learning, and remembering - can affect memory (FDA, 2009). In many cases, alternative names are used for memory loss, such as forgetfulness, amnesia or impaired memory.

Some causes which affect the memory’s parts and enforce memory loss are listed below: