PROGNOSIS AND TREATMENT

treatment procedure in their delusional formations. One of the melancholia patients improved considerably. Three others showed a mild transitory improvement and the other six remained unchanged. Slight variations in weight were noted after treatment in both the praecox and involutional cases. There was a tendency to low basal metabolism value prior to treatment in the dementia pr2ecox group. Insignificant changes were noted in the oxygen consumption rate during and at the end of treatment in both groups. There was a larger number of cases with relatively low blood counts prior to the institution of treatment in the melancholic group as compared to the dementia praecox group. Improvement in the blood picture at the end of treatment was noted in the involutional melancholia patients. C. S. R. [144] Treatment of schizophrenia with prolonged narcosis.-PAUL HOCK. Psychiatric Quarterly, 1935, 9, 386. ON the basis of his experience the author outlines the following indications for prolonged narcosis in this psychosis. All acute schizophrenics with excitement, depression or apprehension, are suitable cases, the most favourable results being obtained in cases of acute catatonic excitement. Less favourable results are observed in stuporous cases and in mute, manneristic catatonias with stereotypies and other psychomotor phenomena. Quiet, self-absorbed catatonics are also suitable to lessen the autism and diminish the negativism. The procedure employed is preliminary to a psychotherapeutic approach. Chronic or slowly developing forms of catatonics are not much influenced by prolonged narcosis. No beneficial results were observed in cases of dementia simplex or in schizophrenics accompanied with mental deficiency unless episodes of excitement or depression were present. The treatment is used primarily to control the excitements: no effect upon the psychosis per se can be expected. Quiet, paranoid schizophrenics are not influenced. Cases where the psychosis was precipitated by an actual conflict in the environment respond most favourably to the treatment. Better results are obtained when certain psychotherapeutic measures are employed after completing the narcosis. Occupational therapy should be immediately used where it is practicable. In three different groups in the author's clinic, scopolaminluminal, avertin-luminal, and pernocton-luminal were the narcotics respectively used.