N. Hatotani, THE CONCEPT OF ATYPICAL PSYCHOSES - SPECIAL REFERENCE TO ITS DEVELOPMENT IN JAPAN, PSYCHIATRY AND CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES, 50(1), 1996, pp. 1-10
Reviewing the development of concepts of 'atypical' psychoses in Europ
ean countries and in the United States shows that there are various te
rminologies which are given to a group of psychoses unclassifiable wit
hin Kraepelinian dichotomy. Bouffee delirante (French school), cycloid
psychoses (Leonhard, Perris), reactive psychoses (Scandinavian school
) and acute schizoaffective psychoses (Kasanin) are the most common te
rms. These are consistent in terms of acute onset, polymorphic symptom
atology and good prognosis, and are considered to be distinct from maj
or psychoses, especially from typical schizophrenia. The concept atypi
cal psychoses in Japan was developed under the influence of Mitsuda's
clinico-genetic studies. According to Mitsuda, atypical psychoses are
not mere phenotypical variants of typical schizophrenia and manic-depr
essive psychosis (MDP) but belong to a genetically different category
and are probably heterogeneous. The characteristic features in the Jap
anese concept of atypical psychoses emphasizes the alteration of consc
iousness in symptomatology and pays attention to the nosological relat
ionship with epilepsy, as well as with schizophrenia and MDP. Thus, in
Japan it is generally considered that atypical psychoses are independ
ent of 'typical' major psychoses and are located nosologically in the
border area between typical schizophrenia, MDP and epilepsy.