OBJECTIVE Identify the frequency of catatonia among at-risk children and adolescents receiving psychiatric treatment. METHOD Subjects were children and adolescents (<18 years), who had received psychiatric treatment at a University Hospital during 2004-2009, and were diagnosed with disorders with known risk for catatonia or displayed symptoms suggestive of catatonia. Approval was obtained fro...

This article is an unabashed drumroll for increased recognition and treatment of catatonia in autism spectrum disorders (ASD). This new diagnostic and treatment paradigm has emerged during the last decade (1, 2) and is supported by changes in catatonia classification in DSM-5 (3) purporting to boost recognition of pediatric catatonia and catatonia in ASD (4). Findings are summarized, a vignette...

Catatonia is a severe motor syndrome with an estimated prevalence among psychiatric inpatients of about 10%. At times, it is life-threatening especially in its malignant form when complicated by fever and autonomic disturbances. Catatonia can accompany many different psychiatric illnesses and somatic diseases. In order to recognize the catatonic syndrome, apart from thorough and repeated observ...

The pathophysiology of malignant catatonia, a rare life-threatening psychiatric syndrome, has not yet been elucidated. This paper reports on two patients with malignant catatonia who showed elevated urinary or plasma catecholamine levels. Patient 1 had high catecholamine and metabolite levels in a 24-hour urine sample, and patient 2 had elevated plasma catecholamine levels. These findings indic...

objective: to compare the clinical profile and pattern of catatonic symptoms of patients with schizophrenia and mood disorder. method: records of 13,968 patients seen between 1983-1985 and 2003-2005 were reviewed for symptoms of catatonia by resident doctors in psychiatry. cases in which the diagnosis were schizophrenia or mood disorder were then noted. socio-demographic and clinical features w...

OBJECTIVE Catatonia, a motor dysregulation syndrome, can emerge in numerous psychiatric disorders, mainly in schizophrenia and mood disorders, and metabolic and endocrine disorders such as infections, toxic states, epilepsy, and traumatic brain injury. In our study, we aimed to investigate demographic, clinical, and treatment-related characteristics of catatonic patients managed in our inpatien...

INTRODUCTION Despite the increased recognition of catatonia in children and adolescents, no specific assessment instrument has been validated in this population. METHOD Within the context of a prospective study on catatonia, we developed the Pediatric Catatonia Rating Scale (PCRS, maximum score=60), adapted from the Bush and Francis Catatonia Rating Scale for its use in child and adolescent i...

OBJECTIVE Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) antibody was thought to be the cause of anti-NMDAR encephalitis, with manifestations similar to catatonia and schizophrenia. Anti-NMDAR antibody in neuropsychiatric patients who had catatonia before were investigated in a follow-up evaluation. The intensity of antibody immunofluorescence was quantified and compared with healthy controls. ME...

The current issue ofSchizophreniaBulletin includes 2 opinion pieces on the nosology of catatonia and 1 on the treatment of catatonia. Fink and colleagues argue that the original concept of catatonia, introduced by Karl Kahlbaum in 1874, was inappropriately subsumed under dementia praecox and, subsequently, schizophrenia. They ask for a divorce of catatonia from schizophrenia and the recognition...

Catatonia is a motor dysregulation syndrome described by Karl Kahlbaum in 1874. He understood catatonia as a disease of its own. Others quickly recognized it among diverse disorders, but Emil Kraepelin made it a linchpin of his concept of dementia praecox. Eugen Bleuler endorsed this singular association. During the 20th century, catatonia has been considered a type of schizophrenia. In the 197...