TRANSCULTURATION, PSYCHOSIS AND KORO SYMPTOMS

Koro is a clinical syndrome characterized by the conviction of penile retraction and fear of inevitable death upon its disappearance into th e abdomen. The syndrome is generally considered culture bound, yet an increasing number of sporadic cases were attributed to psychiatric, sy stemic or neurologic pathology. in the following article, sporadic kor o cases associated with paranoid psychosis or schizophrenia have been assembled, indicating that immigration is an important factor in the p athogenesis of the clinical phenomenon. The interplay between psychosi s, transculturation and cultural influence affecting koro development is discussed.