Manic pseudo-delirium – two case reports

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Hutchinson, Gerard^; | David, Anthony

Affiliations: Maudsley Hospital, London | Kings College Hospital and the Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK

Note: [] Correspondence to: Gerard Hutchinson, Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, Camberwell, London, SE5 8AF, UK

Abstract: We wish to report two cases which illustrate a subtype of bipolar affective disorder and suggest that it should be termed Manic Pseudo-Delirium (MP-D) as it incorporates features of both mania and delirium. This will facilitate consistent recognition and characterization since mania remains the primary diagnosis and delirium is not thought to co-exist with functional psychoses. Extensive investigations were done to exclude underlying medical causes for the delirium. Possible explanations for MP-D are put forward for their heuristic value in the hope that further research will improve understanding of the pathophysiology of both mania and delirium.

Keywords: Delirium, Manic disorder, Brain diseases

DOI: 10.3233/BEN-1997-10104

Journal: Behavioural Neurology, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 21-23, 1997