Problem:
In the 1960s and 70s the Carlsberg Brewery in Copenhagen, Denmark had a policy that their employees could drink beer during breaks and take as much beer home as they liked each day. Over time they began to have a number of complaints from family members reporting quite a number of employees displayed memory problems. In the mid-1970s Leon Thal, a young neurologist, was given a neurology fellowship in Copenhagen and he was assigned to the Carlsberg Brewery to try to determine the genesis of the unsual number of people under the age of 45 with severe memory problems. After examining several employees with the reported memory problems, he found that they often could not retain anything older than a few minutes old. Their speech was fluent, they could follow instructions and they would confabulate when asked questions regarding recently past events. Given their consumption of alcohol, Dr. Thal recommended that Carlsberg change their beer policy for employees. Subsequently, they no longer allowed drinking during breaks, and reduced the free beer to employees to a liter per day. Since then, the memory syndrome has largely disappeared among their employees. Patient's Brief Medical History Chief complaint: Deficit in memory of recent. Need Assignment Help?