Influence of Emotional Excitement on Insulin Content of Blood in Normals and Psychotic Patients

Abstract

It was shown recently 1 that emotional excitement leads to a discharge over both vago-insulin and sympathetico-adrenal systems, the effect on the latter predominating in the normal animal. These observations are supplemented by the present studies in which the insulin concentration of the human blood was determined by an assay on the hypophysectomized-adreno-demedullated rat. 2

If 1 cc of normal human blood is injected intraperitoneally into such rats and the blood sugar is determined after one hour a very slight fall in blood sugar is observed and the animals do not show any symptoms (A). If, however, excited psychotic patients are tested it is found that their blood produces a marked hypoglycemia in test animals, frequently leading to coma or hypoglycemic convulsions. It is noteworthy that this result was regularly obtained with the blood of 13 excited patients (C, Table I) whose blood sugar was unaltered. Moreover, in 2 cases (G) it could be shown that in quiet periods following the excitatory state the test no longer indicated increased amounts of insulin in the blood but produced a reaction similar to that of our control cases. Apparently emotional excitement leads in these cases predominantly to an increased secretion of insulin, whereas in normals the effect on the sympathetico-adrenal system prevails. 1 , 3 This conclusion is supported by the comparative study of Groups B, C, and D. Students excited by the writing of the semester examination served as controls. Their blood sugar was somewhat elevated and caused a slight rise in the blood sugar of the test rat (B). The blood of an excited patient with a similar hyperglycemia (D) caused a conspicuous hypoglycemia in the test animal. Even in the case of Group E in which emotional excitement led to a more marked hyperglycemia indicating a much greater adrenalin secretion than in the excited controls (B), the test animal reacted with a slight hypoglycemia similar to that found in the unexcited control group. Obviously, the insulin concentration of the blood was increased sufficiently to offset completely the effects of adrenalin on the blood sugar of the test animal.