Abstract
The chapter provides an overview about catatonia. Catatonia is a psychomotor syndrome that can be characterized by a peculiar constellation of affective, motor, and behavioral symptoms. Phenomenologically, these patients often report intense and uncontrollable anxieties which they cannot control. These can occur in the context of various psychiatric disorders including schizophrenia, depression, and mania. I conclude that catatonia is a final common functional pathway into which different disorders can converge.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Bleuler, E. (1911). Dementia praecox or the group o schizophrenias (J. Zinkin, Trans.). New York: International Universities Press, 1950.
Caroff, S. N. (1980). The neuroleptic malignant syndrome. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 41(3), 79–83.
Fink, M. (2013). Rediscovering catatonia: The biography of a treatable syndrome. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. Supplementum, 127(441), 1–47. doi:10.1111/acps.12038.
Kahlbaum, K. (1874). Die Katatonie oder das Spannungsirresein: Eine klinische Form psychishcer krankheit. Berlin: Hirshwald. [Translated: Y. Levy & T. Pridon (Trans.). (1973). Catatonia. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press.]
Krapelin, E. (1887). Psychiatrie: Ein kurzes Lehrbuch fuer Studierende und Aerzte (2nd ed.). Leipzig: Ambr Abel.
Northoff, G. (1996). Neuroleptic malignant syndrome and catatonia: One entity or two? Biological Psychiatry, 40(5), 431–433.
Northoff, G. (1997). Katatonie: Einführung in die Phänomenologie, Klinik und Pathophysiologie eines psychomotorischen Syndroms [Catatonia: Introduction into the phenomenology, clinic, and pathophysiology of a psychomotor syndrome]. Stuttgart: Ferdinand Enke Verlag.
Northoff, G. (2000). Brain imaging in catatonia: Current findings and a pathophysiologic model. CNS Spectrums, 5(7), 34–46.
Northoff, G. (2002a). Catatonia and neuroleptic malignant syndrome: Psychopathology and pathophysiology. Journal of Neural Transmission, 109(12), 1453–1467. Review.
Northoff, G. (2002b). What catatonia can tell us about “top-down modulation”: A neuropsychiatric hypothesis. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 25(5), 555–577. Discussion 578–604. Review.
Northoff, G. (2010). Options for the treatment of febrile catatonia. Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, 35(4), E5–E6. No abstract available.
Northoff, G. (2014a). Unlocking the brain (Coding, Vol. I). New York: Oxford University Press.
Northoff, G. (2014b). Unlocking the brain (Consciousness, Vol. II). New York: Oxford University Press.
Northoff, G. (2014c). Minding the brain. Introduction to neuroscience & philosophy. London: Palgrave MacMillan.
Northoff, G., Bermpohl, F., Schoeneich, F., & Boeker, H. (2007). How does our brain constitute defense mechanisms? First-person neuroscience and psychoanalysis. Psychotheraphy and Psychosomatics, 76(3), 141–153.
Northoff, G., Kötter, R., Baumgart, F., Danos, P., Boeker, H., Kaulisch, T., et al. (2004). Orbitofrontal cortical dysfunction in akinetic catatonia: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study during negative emotional stimulation. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 30(2), 405–427.
Northoff, G., Krill, W., Wenke, J., Travers, H., & Pflug, B. (1996). [The subjective experience in catatonia: Systematic study of 24 catatonic patients]. Psychiatrische Praxis, 23(2), 69–73.
Northoff, G., Steinke, R., Czcervenka, C., Krause, R., Ulrich, S., Danos, P., et al. (1999). Decreased density of GABA-A receptors in the left sensorimotor cortex in akinetic catatonia: Investigation of in vivo benzodiazepine receptor binding. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 67(4), 445–450.
Richter, A., Grimm, S., & Northoff, G. (2010). Lorazepam modulates orbitofrontal signal changes during emotional processing in catatonia. Human Psychopharmacology, 25(1), 55–62. doi:10.1002/hup.1084.
Stauder, K. H. (1934). Die toedliche Katatonie. Archiv für Psychiatrie und Nervenkrankheiten, 102, 614–634.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Northoff, G. (2016). Catatonia—Phenomenology, Psychopathology, and Pathophysiology. In: Stanghellini, G., Aragona, M. (eds) An Experiential Approach to Psychopathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29945-7_18
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29945-7_18
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-29943-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-29945-7
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)