RESUMO
An analysis is carried out of a set of psychic phenomena appearing always in the same way: an experience suddenly invades the consciousness, unfolding automatically and with great intensity. This psychic automatism, of which the patient is a passive observer, is accompanied by an overwhelming feeling of strangeness. Our hypothesis is that these phenomena are the expression of partial seizures with a psychic content. A comparative study is then made of the phenomenology of these partial seizures with a psychic content, on the one hand, and of that of positive syndrome of schizophrenia, on the other. It reveals a wealth of clinical information indicating an overlap between the two conditions. This inclines us to postulate of an existence of shared etiopathogenic mechanisms for both pathologies.
Assuntos
Epilepsia/classificação , Epilepsia/psicologia , Modelos Psicológicos , Esquizofrenia/classificação , Psicologia do Esquizofrênico , Terminologia como Assunto , Humanos , SíndromeRESUMO
An analysis is carried out of a set of psychic phenomena appearing always in the same way: an experience suddenly invades the consciousness, unfolding automatically and with great intensity. This psychic automatism, of which the patient is a passive observer, is accompanied by an overwhelming feeling of strangeness. Our hypothesis is that these phenomena are the expression of partial seizures with a psychic content, and the name Paroxysmal Psychic Automatisms is proposed for all of them. A comparative study is then made of the phenomenology of partial seizures with a psychic content, on the one hand, and of that of melancholic major depression, on the other. It reveals a wealth of clinical information indicating an overlap between the two conditions. Finally, a set of well-established scientific data is analysed concerning epilepsy and depression, especially epidemiological and psychopharmacological information, which takes on a new meaning in the light of the hypothesis developed in this paper.
Assuntos
Transtorno Depressivo Maior/epidemiologia , Transtorno Depressivo Maior/psicologia , Emoções , Epilepsia/epidemiologia , Epilepsia/psicologia , Modelos Neurológicos , Modelos Psicológicos , Comorbidade , Transtorno Depressivo/epidemiologia , Transtorno Depressivo/psicologia , Humanos , PrevalênciaRESUMO
This research is based on previous publications that have analyzed certain neuropsychological phenomena that always have the same characteristic clinical features: a vivid experience of sudden onset and automatic development, accompanied by an intense sensation of strangeness. When these automatisms are accompanied by only mental symptoms, the designation paroxysmal psychic automatisms (PPAs) is proposed, and they should be interpreted as partial seizures (PSs) with a psychic content whenever they clearly exhibit the four features of suddenness, passivity, intensity, and strangeness. This interpretation is based on the existence of a wealth of scientific literature indicating an overlap between PPAs and PSs; moreover, bibliographic reviews indicate that the clinical signs just defined as characterizing PPAs are precisely those defining the epileptic consciousness.
