Chronic posttraumatic cerebral psychosyndrome; [HRONICNI POSTRAUMATSKI CEREBRALNI PSIHOSINDROM]

Abstract

The authors report the results of a 2 yr study of 70 cases of craniocerebral injuries selected with a view to attempting a clinical identification of the posttraumatic cerebral psychosyndrome and its differentiation from neurotic reactions. They give a detailed individual and correlative analysis of data on the kind and severity of injuries, subjective complaints, objective neuropsychiatric examination, psychograms, EEG, and otologic findings. They extract cases of the psychoneurological posttraumatic syndrome characterized by a 'disautomation of psychic processes' and reduced mental efficacy. A clinico psychological analysis and 40 tested cases have shown that regularly encountered emotional disorders are primary traumas rather than a secondary reaction to intellectual difficulties. Although associations between the psychosyndrome and neurological reactions are very complicated, it does appear clear that isolated focal signs have no significant correlation with the psychosyndrome. This correlation, however, is often expressed by the signs connected in clinical neurology with frontal lobes and the bilateral lesions of the motor system.