The authors explored childhood and later physical and sexual abuse experiences in 53 female psychiatric inpatients using objective measures.

All subjects were interviewed and administered the life experiences questionnaire and the SCL-90-R and obtained the data on diagnoses, suicidal symtoms and psychotropic medications.

Forty-two(79.2%) of the 53 women reported a history of abuse at some time during their lives. Thirty(56.6%) of them experienced abuse before age 16 and twelve(22.6%) of them experienced abuse at age 16 or later.

The most frequent perpetrators of physical abuse were family members(father before age 16, husband at age 16 or later). The most frequent perpetartors of sexual abuse were not family memebers(strangers before age 16, boy friend at age 16 or later).

The SCL-90-R scores from abused subjects before age 16 within the inpatient psychiatric norms(mean±SD=50±10), but the scores of interpersonal sensitivety, paranoid ideology, psychoticism, global severity index of SCL-90-R subjects.

The abused subjects before age 16 had more diagnoses of depression and schizophrenia and suicidal symptoms and they were given psychotropic medications more often.

Taken together, these findings suggest that childhood abuse experiences were correlated with severity of adult psychiatric symtoms.

The serum vitamin B₁₂(B₁₂) and folic acid estimations were performed on 206 psychiatric inpatients, consecutive admissions to a Ewha Womans University Hospital, Neuropsychiatric Department.

The mean serum B₁₂ value in the subjects(1004.24±479.76pg/ml) was somewhat higher than the normal serum B₁₂ value and none of the subjects has serum B₁₂ deficiency.

The mean serum B₁₂ value was the lowest in 21~30 age group and the highest in 31~40 age group(p<0.05).

The mean serum folic acid value(8.09±4.15ng/ml) was in the range of normal value. But the patients with low serum folic acid value(O~2.5ng/ml) were 6 cases(2.9%), consisting of 3 schizophrenia, 1 mood disorder and 1 epilepsy and the ratio of patients with low anti equivocal serum folic acid value(<5.Ong/ml) was 23.8%. The mean serum folic acid value was the lowest in 11~20 age group and the highest in 51~60 age group(p<0.05).

Patients with epilepsy, organic mental disorder and schizophrenia(in order) had significantly lower mean serum B₁₂ & folic acid values and alcoholism had significantly higher mean serum B₁₂ & folic acid values(p<0.05).

It was concluded that serum B₁₂ deficiency was not related to the psychiatric disorders and the serum folic acid deficiency, but folic acid deficiency appeared to be in certain psychiatric disorders and related to the chronicity of mental illness.

This study was conducted to investigate the effect of lithium treatment on the serum total calcium, ionized calcium and phosphate in bipolar disorder.

The subjects were 20 patients. The total calcium, ionized calcium and serum phosphate were measured before and after lithium treatment, and the values were statistically analyzed.

The results are summarized as follows:

1) Serum total calcium level was significantly increased after lithium treatment(p<0.01).

2) Ionized calcium level was significantly increased after lithium treatment(p<0.05).

3) Phosphate level was significantly increased after lithium treatment(p<0.05).

Serum folate levels have been estimated in 187 successively admitted inpatients at Department of Neuropsychiatry. Ewha Womans University Hospital. The mean age of the patients was 34.8±14.9, and the mean serum folate value was 8.0±4.0ng/ml.The younger age patients with sleep and conduct disorder and epilepsy had lower serum folate value than older patients with other diseases. In regard to the relation between folate deficiency and psychiatric diagnosis, epilepsy had the lowest serum folate value(3.6±l.6ng/ml) and neurosis had the highest value(10.4±5.5ng/ml). The patients with low(0~2.5ng/ml)serum folate value were 6 cases(3.2%), consisting of 4 schizophrenia, 1 mood disorder and 1 epilepsy. The ratio of patients with low and equivocal (below 5.0ng/ml) serum folate value was 24.6%, epilepsy had the highest proportion(66.6%). None of the alcoholism had low and equivocal serum folate value. 73.9% of patients with low and equivocal serum folate value were continously ill for more than year comparing to 48.9% of patients with normal serum folate value, and the difference was significant(X²=3.92, p<0.05). Since folate deficiency appeared to be in certain psychiatric disease and related to the chronicity of mental illness, it would be wise to carry out serum folate estimations and to treat the patients with subnormal serum folate value with folate supplements.

Hospital records of neuropsychiatric patients admitted to Ewha Womans University Hospital via the emergency room from January 1, 1982 to December 31, 1986 were reviewed, and the following results were obtained. 1) Patients admitted via the emergency room comprised 6.65% of total neuropsychiatric admission The rate of emergency admission were 3.98% at 1982, 3.48% at 1983, 8.5% at 1984, 7.9% at 1985, 9.4% at 1986 which seems increasing tendency. 2) The male : female sex ratio of the patients was 1 : 1.03. 43% of the emergency room admission patients were in their twenties and 20% of the patients were thirties, 63% of them were in their twenties or thirties. 3) 82% of them were in the middle class of socioeconomic level, 46% of the patients had college education level and 51% of them were married status. 4) Presenting problems, in the order of frequency, were delusion and hallucination, somaticsymptom, anxiety and phobia, exciting and assultive behavior, convulsion, suicide attempt, behavior disorder, sleeping disturbance, consciousness disorder and homicide tendency. 5) In most cases the duration of hospitalization was 2 weeks or less for neurosis and over 2 weeks in schizophernic disorders. 6) 21.5% of the emergency room patients were diagnosed as schizophrenic disorder which was the most frequent diagnosis in all patients. 7) 23% of the emergency room patients were discharged against medical advice.

This article reviewed the thoretical unerpinnings of the DSM III classification system, with particular emphasis on psychogeriatic practice. Advantages of a descriptive approach, use of operational criteria, and the utility of a multiaxialsystem in developing comprehensive treatment program were examined. A retrospective study, 5 years after the implementation of DSM III, was conducted on all consecutive admissions to the neuropsychiatry department of Ewha Womans University, College of Medicine, and the results were as follows. The thirty cases of the senile mental disorders showed the following characteristic pictures. 1) Majority of the cases(53.4%) were distributed in the decade of their sixties and male. 2) In the diagnostic distribution, 53.4% of the cases were categorized as organic mental disorder and 30.0% as major affective disorder. 3) The ratio of male patient and female patient was 4.3:1 in organic mental disorder and 2:1 in major affective disorder. 4) In the age distribution, 50.0% of the cases were categorized as organic mental disorder and 55.6% as major affective disorder. Both of the cases were aged between 60 and 64. 5) Their educational level revealed that 40.0% of the patients were primary school graduates. 6) As to the occupational distrubution, the jobless occupied the larger percentages, but patients who have job their age distribution was 60-64. 7) As to their religious affiliation the most population was 30.0% of protestant. 8) In the distribution of physical disorders, hypertension occupied the highest rate of 26.7%. 9) As to the marital status, 73.3% of the cases were living with their spouses. 10) There were no relation between premorbid social psychological stress and premorbid adaptation.

Author attempted of find out whether there were any characteristic findings in the sibling schizophrenics family(family in which more than two members of sibling were schizophrenia) including clinical features, interpersonal relationship and some of sociodemographyic aspects. Data for the sample were obtained 17 schizophrenics from 8 sibling schizophrenics families who were admilted to neuropsychiatric department EWHA Womens University Hospital from March 1st 1973 to February 28th 1983. Results obtained were summerized as follows; The members of sibling were larger in the schizophrenics families than that of normal and the first born childrens and last born childrens were affectes more frequently than subseguent ones. Sibling schizophrenics were tended to be heigh educates, no employed and low middle socioeconomic class. In the familial history, sibling schizophrenic's father proband had more frequently affectes than mother proband. Usually mother's characters were found to be over protective and active but father's were indifferent and passive. Their father and mother had mother dominent and hostile relationship. Interpersonal relationship between sibling schizophrenics had relative affective(41.2%) in the majority. Comparative analysis of the above finding showed no differences from the family in which only one child was afflicted schizophrenia.

Chronic factitious disorder with physical symptoms is an appropriate diagnosis in patients who consciously distort their medical history and produce misleading physical finding and laboratory results through self-inflicted lesions. By simulating patterns of physical diseases, these patients may subject themselves to painful and dangerous diagnostic and treatment procedures. Munchausen syndrome represents a special pattern within the group of chronic factitious disorder with physical symptoms.

The typical patient presents at a hospital as an acute emergency and usually has a lurid yet plausible medical and social history, which is laterfound to be entirely false and fabricated. After several fruitless investications with or without surgical operations, a diagnosis cannot be made and the patient eventually discharges himself and goes to another hospital where the process is repeated. It is importent to diagnose these patients early to avoid unnecessary medical and surgical interventions and to introduce psychiatric treatment.

A typical case of Munchausen syndrome is reported with a brief review of literatures. This is believed to be the first reported case of Munchausen syndrome in Koera.

The incidence of mental illness in the modern society has been increasing and the use of the tranquilizer for the treatment of these illnesses has been increasing also. The side effects of the tranquilizer are reportedly, minimal and the long term use of the medicine is widely practised in this field. But the question of its effect on cardiovascular system has been discussed previously and the level of cholesterol and triglyceride was found to increase in patients who have been on the tranquilizer for a long period of time. The current study was undertaken to find out the effect of tranquilizer(chlorpromazine, thioridazine, perphenazine, haloperidol, and pimozide) given to the animals for 4 weeks. And the results are summarized as follow: 1) In the animal group given chlorpromazine, thioridazine, and perphenazine, the level of total serum cholesterol was increased and the activity of microsomal HMG-Co A reductase was also increased. However, in the group given haloperidol and pimozide, there was no increase of cholesterol level or activity of microsomal HMG-Co A reductase. 2) The correlation of serum total cholesterol level and the activity of HMG-Co A reductase in the liver and brain was significant. From the Above results, it could be concluded that the effect of the long term use of tranquilizer on the cadiovascular systerm should be reevaluated.

Fifty schizophrenic inpatients receiving antipsychotic medications were evaluated as informed and or consenting drug consumers by means of structured interview, in comparison with a matched group of medical inpatients receiving nonpsychotrpic drugs. Medical patients were better informed about positive aspects of medication, such as relationship of drug treatment to a specific diagnosis and not better informed about positive aspects of medication, such as name and dose. Schizophrenic patients, however, were significantly better informed about side effects and risks. Although both groups felt that their medication had helped them, 84% of the medical patients but only 72% of the schizophrenic patients said they would take the medication if they had choice. The fact that schizophrenic inpatients readly shared their reluctance to take medication with an interviewer may offer an avenue for detection and intervention improve prospects for outpatient compliance.