Abstract

Catatonia remains a very enigmatic neuropsychiatric disorder. Probably, its own conception is confusing, victim of a problematic history. Initially conceptualised as an independent clinical entity, catatonia was quickly amalgamated with schizophrenia in the central European tradition initiated by Kraepelin and Bleuler and confined there. Later, it has been associated to affective disorders, mostly by the Anglo-Saxon school (Adams et al). But more recently, it has been associated to several psychiatric and non-psychiatric disorders. In 2022, the ICD -11 (in February) and DMS -5-TR (in June) have updated their criteria and views on catatonia. In this lecture, and the take home message, I will first define catatonia as if it were a distinct entity, to illustrate the clinical phenomena in catatonia, to later expand to catatonia as a syndrome, with its different causes. We will then move into the epidemiology, pathophysiology and treatment of catatonia.