Auto-evisceration in an elderly schizophrenic female

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Ophthalmology
• Medical Case Studies

Background:

• Auto-evisceration is a rare and severe form of self-mutilation.
• It predominantly affects middle-aged males with histories of depression, schizophrenia, or substance abuse.
• This case presents a deviation from the typical demographic profile.

Observation:

• A 72-year-old female patient with schizophrenia, residing in a psychiatric institute for 33 years, experienced a commanding auditory hallucination.
• Following the hallucination, she manually performed a right-sided auto-evisceration of her eye.
• The patient was subsequently admitted to an ophthalmology hospital.

Findings:

• The case involves a rare instance of auto-evisceration in an elderly female schizophrenic patient.
• The act was directly precipitated by a specific auditory hallucination.
• Manual enucleation of the right eye was the method of self-mutilation.

Implications:

• This case expands the known demographic of auto-evisceration, including elderly females with schizophrenia.
• It underscores the critical need for comprehensive psychiatric care and management of hallucinations in such patients.
• Highlights the importance of ophthalmology consultation in managing severe self-inflicted ocular trauma.