Damage to which area leads to difficulties in memory formation in Alzheimer's patients?

The hippocampus is crucial for the formation of new memories, particularly in encoding and retrieving long-term declarative memories. In Alzheimer's disease, damage to the hippocampus is one of the earliest and most significant changes that occur, leading to the characteristic memory impairments associated with the condition. This brain region plays a vital role in consolidating information from short-term memory into long-term memory, so when it is compromised, individuals experience difficulties in forming new memories and recalling information that has recently been learned.

While other areas of the brain, such as the frontal cortex, parietal cortex, and occipital cortex, can also be involved in various cognitive functions, they are not primarily responsible for memory formation like the hippocampus. Damage to these areas can lead to other cognitive deficits, such as problem-solving difficulties or visual processing issues, rather than the specific memory formation issues characteristic of Alzheimer's pathology. Thus, impairments in the hippocampus directly cause the memory formation challenges seen in Alzheimer's patients.