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Vavilovskii Zhurnal Genet Selektsii 2022 May;26(3):281-289

Institute of Cytology and Genetics of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia.

Various psychopathologies, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression, are associated with abnormalities in social behavior and learning. One of the syndromes that may also take place in these disorders is catatonia. Catatonia is a psychomotor syndrome in which motor excitement, stereotypy, stuporous state, including the phenomenon of "waxy flexibility" (catalepsy), can be observed. Read More

Prim Care Companion CNS Disord 2022 Jun 14;24(3). Epub 2022 Jun 14.

Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia.

Schizophr Res 2022 Jun 13. Epub 2022 Jun 13.

Mind, Brain Imaging and Neuroethics Research Unit, The Royal's Institute of Mental Health Research, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.

Since January 1st 2022, catatonia is (again) recognized as an independent diagnostic entity in the 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). This is a relevant time to systematically review how the concept of catatonia has evolved within the 19th century and how this concept changed under the influence of a wide variety of events in the history of psychiatry. Here, we systematically reviewed historical and modern German and English texts focusing on catatonic phenomena, published from 1800 to 1900. Read More

J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2022 Jun 4. Epub 2022 Jun 4.

Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.

Am J Med Genet A 2022 Jun 11. Epub 2022 Jun 11.

Down Syndrome Program, Developmental Medicine Center, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Front Psychiatry 2022 23;13:886662. Epub 2022 May 23.

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom.

Background: The external clinical manifestations (psychopathology) and internal subjective experience (phenomenology) of catatonia are of clinical importance but have received little attention. This study aimed to use a large dataset to describe the clinical signs of catatonia; to assess whether these signs are associated with underlying diagnosis and prognosis; and to describe the phenomenology of catatonia, particularly with reference to fear.

Methods: A retrospective descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using the electronic healthcare records of a large secondary mental health trust in London, United Kingdom. Read More

BJPsych Bull 2022 Jun 7:1-12. Epub 2022 Jun 7.

Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, UK.

Aims And Method: Catatonia has been increasingly described in cases of COVID-19; we therefore aimed to investigate the evidence for catatonia in patients with COVID-19. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, BIN and CINAHL databases for articles published in English, from the initial descriptions of the COVID-19 pandemic to January 2022.

Results: A total 204 studies were identified, 27 (13%) of which met the inclusion criteria. Read More

Schizophr Res 2022 Jun 3. Epub 2022 Jun 3.

Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Spain; Department of Psychiatry, Complejo Hospitalario de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain.

Background: The long-term stability of neuromotor domains assessed at the first episode of psychosis (FEP) and their ability for predicting a number of outcomes remains largely unknown, and this study addressed these issues.

Methods: This was a longitudinal study of 243 participants with FEP who were assessed at baseline for background variables and parkinsonism, dyskinesia, neurological soft signs (NSS) and catatonia, and reassessed 21 years later for the same neuromotor variables, psychopathology, functioning, personal recovery, cognitive performance and medical comorbidity. Stability of neuromotor ratings was assessed using the intraclass correlations coefficient and associations between the predictors and outcomes were examined using univariate and multivariate statistics. Read More

Gen Hosp Psychiatry 2022 Jul-Aug;77:141-146. Epub 2022 May 24.

Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.

Objective: Catatonia is a neuropsychiatric disorder that can occur in the setting of many illnesses, but the frequency of catatonia diagnosis among hospitalized patients is poorly characterized. This study reports the occurrence of catatonia diagnosis among acute care hospital discharges in the United States and the cooccurring diagnoses of these patients.

Method: The National Inpatient Sample, an all-payors database of acute care hospital discharges, was queried for patients older than 18 discharged with a diagnosis of catatonia in 2019. Read More

Indian J Psychol Med 2022 May 5;44(3):310-311. Epub 2021 Jan 5.

Dept. of Psychiatry, Government Medical College, Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh, India.

Brain 2022 May 27. Epub 2022 May 27.

Mind, Brain Imaging and Neuroethics Research Unit, The Royal's Institute of Mental Health Research, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.

Front Psychiatry 2022 12;13:913286. Epub 2022 May 12.

Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli," Naples, Italy.

Aim: A growing body of literature has demonstrated the utility of a dimensional perspective on mental disorders. The current study aims to determine the psychometric properties of the Catatonia Spectrum (CS), a new questionnaire specifically tailored to assess the spectrum of catatonia, from full blown forms to subthreshold ones.

Methods: 86 adults with at least three symptom criteria for catatonia according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), 81 adults affected by borderline personality disorder (BPD), 104 adults with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD), and 105 subjects without mental disorders (CTL), were recruited from six Italian University Departments of Psychiatry and administered the: Bush-Francis Catatonia Rating Scale (BFCRS), Bush-Francis Catatonia Screening Instrument (BFCSI), and CS. Read More

J ECT 2022 May 25. Epub 2022 May 25.

Department of Psychiatry, The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, OH.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine rates of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) use for catatonia in schizophrenia spectrum disorders, stratified by patient demographics and hospital characteristics, and its impact on inpatient length of stay and cost.

Methods: We found 155 adolescents (aged 12-18 years) with principal discharge diagnosis of schizophrenia spectrum disorders with catatonia from the National Inpatient Sample. They were subgrouped into ECT (n = 20) and non-ECT (n = 135) groups. Read More

Schizophr Res 2022 May 18. Epub 2022 May 18.

Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany. Electronic address:

At present, current diagnostic criteria and systems neglect affective symptom expression in catatonia. This potentially serious omission could explain why putative contributions of limbic system structures, such as amygdala, hippocampus or hypothalamus, to catatonia in schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD) have been scarcely investigated so far. To determine whether topographical alterations of the amygdala, hippocampus and hypothalamus contribute to catatonia in SSD patients, we conducted structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of SSD patients with (SSD-Cat, n = 30) and without (SSD-nonCat, n = 28) catatonia as defined by a Northoff Catatonia Rating Scale (NCRS) total score of ≥3 and =0, respectively, in comparison with healthy controls (n = 20). Read More

J Ayub Med Coll Abbottabad 2022 Apr-Jun;34(2):357-359

Liaquat University of Medical and Health Science, Jamshoro, Pakistan.

Background: Catatonia is a psychomotor syndrome characterized by numerous clinical features, a few being stupors which is the most common sign, posturing, forced grasping, echopraxia, etc. There have been cases documented in the literature of Catatonia occurring with COVID-19. This article will focus on the complete and brief overview of catatonia observed in patients with COVID-19 infection. Read More

Front Psychiatry 2022 29;13:876678. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Department of Psychiatry, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.

Front Psychiatry 2022 27;13:876834. Epub 2022 Apr 27.

GHU PARIS Psychiatrie and Neurosciences, site Sainte-Anne, Service Hospitalo-Universitaire, Pôle Hospitalo-Universitaire Paris 15, Paris, France.

Catatonia is a severe neuropsychiatric syndrome, usually treated by benzodiazepines and electroconvulsive therapy. However, therapeutic alternatives are limited, which is particularly critical in situations of treatment resistance or when electroconvulsive therapy is not available. Transcranial direct-current stimulation (tDCS) is a promising non-invasive neuromodulatory technique that has shown efficacy in other psychiatric conditions. Read More

Front Psychiatry 2022 29;13:878173. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.

Objective: Catatonia is a neuropsychiatric condition occurring across the age spectrum and associated with great morbidity and mortality. While prospective cohorts have investigated catatonia incidence among psychiatric patients, no studies have comprehensively explored the incidence of catatonia in general hospitals. We examine the incidence of catatonia diagnosis, demographics of catatonia patients, comorbidities, and inpatient procedures utilized among pediatric patients hospitalized with catatonia in the United States. Read More

Lancet Neurol 2022 06;21(6):504

Division of Psychiatry, University College London, London, UK; South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK.

J Clin Psychopharmacol 2022 May 13. Epub 2022 May 13.

Anesth Pain Med (Seoul) 2022 Apr 15;17(2):145-156. Epub 2022 Apr 15.

Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Daejeon Eulji Medical Center, Eulji University School of Medicine, Daejeon, Korea.

Counselling and medication are often thought of as the only interventions for psychiatric disorders, but electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has also been applied in clinical practice for over 80 years. ECT refers to the application of an electric stimulus through the patient's scalp to treat psychiatric disorders such as treatment-resistant depression, catatonia, and schizophrenia. It is a safe, effective, and evidence-based therapy performed under general anesthesia with muscle relaxation. Read More

J ECT 2022 May 5. Epub 2022 May 5.

Psychol Med 2022 May 10:1-9. Epub 2022 May 10.

Department of Neuropsychiatry, National Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico.

Background: Patients with anti-N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor encephalitis (ANMDARE) show a wide range of behavioral abnormalities and are often mistaken for primary psychiatric presentations. We aimed to determine the behavioral hallmarks of ANMDARE with the use of systematic neuropsychiatric and cognitive assessments.

Methods: A prospective study was conducted, with 160 patients admitted to the National Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery of Mexico, who fulfilled criteria for possible autoimmune encephalitis and/or red flags along a time window of seven years. Read More

J Mov Disord 2022 May 10. Epub 2022 May 10.

Division of Neurology, Medical Department, Sungai Buloh Hospital, Ministry of Health, Selangor, Malaysia.

J Psychiatr Pract 2022 May 1;28(3):265-269. Epub 2022 May 1.

NIKJOO, WRIGHT, and KHERIATY: University of California, Irvine Medical Center, Orange, CA.

We present the case of a woman in her 40s with a history of hypothyroidism, a differential diagnosis of major depressive disorder with psychotic features versus bipolar I disorder, catatonia, and anorexia nervosa. The patient was admitted to the hospital for poor oral intake, mutism, and social withdrawal. Administration of lorazepam successfully treated these presenting symptoms. Read More

Psychother Psychosom 2022 May 3:1-28. Epub 2022 May 3.

Department of Psychiatry, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, USA.

Benzodiazepines and medications acting on benzodiazepine receptors that do not have a benzodiazepine structure (z-drugs) have been viewed by some experts and regulatory bodies as having limited benefit and significant risks. Data presented in this article support the use of these medications as treatments of choice for acute situational anxiety, chronic anxiety disorders, insomnia, alcohol withdrawal syndromes, and catatonia. They may also be useful adjuncts in the treatment of anxious depression and mania, and for medically ill patients. Read More

Psychiatr Danub 2022 ;34(1):179-180

Psychiatry Department, Sivas Numune Hospital, Sivas, Turkey.

Psychiatr Danub 2022 ;34(1):91-93

Gaziantep 25 Aralık State Hospital, Değirmiçem District, Mareşal Fevzi Çakmak Street, No:38, 27090 Şehitkamil, Gaziantep, Turkey,

Front Psychiatry 2022 7;13:876727. Epub 2022 Apr 7.

Department of Psychiatry, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.

J ECT 2022 Apr 14. Epub 2022 Apr 14.

From the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, Stony Brook University Renaissance School of Medicine, Stony Brook, NY.

Objectives: Delirious mania is a severe life-threatening syndrome, often misdiagnosed, and eminently treatable as a variant of catatonia. Our aim is to provide a comprehensive examination of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) parameters and clinical features, as well as describe the delivery of care of the patients with delirious mania.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted of the ECT records at Stony Brook University Hospital from years 2014 to 2021. Read More