Age of Onset, Sex Incidence, Course

Abstract

Having consolidated my method of differentiated diagnosis, I have undertaken, with the help of my co-workers, a review of the earlier statistical findings. There were no fundamental changes but it was necessary to make some important modifications. To a certain extent, this statistical section has been shortened since, in the mean time, Angst (1966), and, independently, Perrjs (1966) and later Winokur et al. (196P9), have published extensive statistics on unipolar and bipolar phasic psychoses, confirming the different natures of these disorders. These authors have, like myself, found that both the number and duration of the phases as well as the extent among relatives were different, although they did not base their reasoning on these differences. Perris demonstrated that, in the relatives of unipolar patients, primarily unipolar forms reappeared and that the relatives of bipolar patients suffered primarily from bipolar forms. Angst examined sex incidence among psychoses in the relatives and found very significant differences. The number of women greatly exceeded that of men among the affected relatives of the unipolar group, but this was not the case for the bipolar group. Frau von Trostorff (1968) confirmed Angst’s results, even though she did not find the differences quite as great.