STUDY ON THE REACTIVE PSYCHOSIS OCCURRED DURING THE REVOLUTION OF DECEMBER 1989 - TIMISOARA, ROMANIA

Within the framework of a major psycho-social stress induced by a peop le's revolution, 40 reactive psychoses/ which could be thus labelled, according to well-known and accepted criteria (ICD-9, DSM-III-R) have been ascertained. The clinical picture was predominantly paranoid but the symptoms were comprehensible to a great extent in the given circum stances. The occcurence of the reactive psychosis seems to be conditio ned not so much on the direct contact with the events, but mostly on i ndirect information (mass-media, exhaustion). Half of the cases (20) t hat could be followed up for two years from the event have had an unfa vourable social and clinical, development according to the model of en dogenous psychoses. In these cases, an increasing back ground vulnerab ility can be also presumed. The circumstantial vulnerability (stressin g events of the previous year) does not seem to influence the conditio n.