Responsibility in mental disease / by Henry Maudsley, M.D.

  • Maudsley, Henry, 1835-1918.
Date:
1876
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Responsibility in mental disease / by Henry Maudsley, M.D. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Harvey Cushing/John Hay Whitney Medical Library at Yale University.

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    set forth what is involved in that assertion. In the first place, insanity does not mean one disease to be diagnosed by a single mark, but a variety of diseases, each of which has its more or less characteristic features, its special course, and more or less special cause, and its particular termination. For some purposes it may be enough to say generally that a person is insane, but such a vague statement is not scientific; for medical purposes it is necessary to know under what form of mental derange- ment he labours. In the second place, each form of mental derangement has, like other diseases, its pre- monitory symptoms marking what might be called its stage of incubation, its early symptoms, variations in its course, and a termination which, according as it is good or bad, will be indicated by the different character of the symptoms. We must be prepared therefore for great variations both in the intensity and character of the symptoms at different periods, and by no means expect to observe in all cases a steady course up to a certain intensity, and then a steady decline. These variations are expressed by such terms as intermittent, remittent, -periodic, which are applied to the different forms, accord- ing to their varying phases; particular symptoms, that is, particular insane ideas, feelings and acts, often mark- ing each phase of the disease. It will be necessary, therefore, to take into consideration the whole course and symptoms in any case, and not to conclude hastily either from a single symptom or from a particular phase. The early symptoms commonly differ considerably from those which are manifested at a later period