One of the most extreme examples of how a change in the nervous system can completely change our way of life is Kl-ver-Bucy syndrome.
Imagine that there is a piece in your brain responsible for the emotions of fear and rejection, now imagine that this room is damaged and you are no longer afraid of anything, that sounds great, but it is not, fear is a necessary emotion for our survival.
- This fundamental part is the amygdala and its alteration or elimination can lead to Kl-ver-Bucy syndrome.
- Which is characterized by loss of fear and inhibition.
- Including risky behaviors.
- Alterations in diet and sexual dysfunctions.
He was identified by Heinrich Kliver and Paul Bucy, hence his name. Doctors removed the temporal lobes from rhesus monkeys to explore their functions. What they found was quite disturbing. The change in this structure caused the following symptoms:
Although the symptoms in humans are quite similar, there are substantial differences. Compulsive and indiscriminate behaviours are of particular importance, as social exchanges are completely altered.
Among the main symptoms, we can identify
Fear and rejection are often described as negative (undesirable) emotions. This belief, besides being very superficial, has no biological and evolutionary meaning.
Fear, rejection and inhibition are emotions acquired in an evolutionary way to interact with the environment in a functional way.
When we do not have the ability to interact using the emotions described, the consequences are severe and Kl-ver-Bucy syndrome is a clear example.
Symptoms appear to be caused by the individual’s inability to establish a line that separates their impulses and actions.
This condition is aggravated by the inability to recognize the people around him, which, in turn, prevents the individual from regaining the memory of the emotional bond with the other and behaving consistently with it.
The aforementioned changes have their etiology in the structural alteration of certain organs of the nervous system:
Alteration of the structures mentioned above may have different causes and expressions, among the most common are:
Treatment is as difficult as it is limited due to the inability to recover nerve tissue. Most methods are pharmaceutical, with the aim of alleviating inappropriate behavioral symptoms.
The main objective of the first interventions is to reduce the impact of injuries, an example of this is the attempt to reverse the bleeding caused by a stroke.
It is difficult to predict this syndrome: the consequences of behavioral impairment are generally subtle.
Advances in neuroscience and rehabilitation techniques improve the quality of life of these patients. Kliver-Bucy syndrome is a clear example of the impact of nervous system disorders on our daily lives.
The social circle close to the patient is also often affected, the individual behaves like another person and does not recognize those who are part of his life, so psychological work with family and friends is very important.