Catatonia in High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders: Case Report and Review of Literature

Abstract

Although catatonia has been identified in individuals with autism spectrum disorders, little is known about this relationship. Studies on previous case reports dealing with the relationship between catatonia and autism spectrum disorders are reviewed, then the case of a 28-yr.-old Japanese woman with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder who exhibited mood disorder and catatonia is described. Her mood disorder was apparently induced by a crisis of her “inner world,” constituted as a way of coping with a sense of alienation, related to her impaired development in reciprocal social interaction. Environmental change, a precipitating factor, induced alternation between catatonia and depression. Fluvoxamine ameliorated both features. The catatonia identified in this patient is considered to be symptom derived from depression. Given the limitation of this single case, such a conclusion is necessarily tentative. Closer investigation into cases in which patients with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders describe their own psychological experiences should be pursued.