[A clinical study of death in profound mental retardation with motor disturbance]

Among 848 cases of profound mental retardation with motor disturbance admitted to Metropolitan Medical Center of Severely Handicapped in the last 20 years, 98 died. The 94 cases whose cause of death was determined were clinically investigated. There was no difference in sex, and 72% of the patients died before the age of 15 years. Half of the patients died of pneumonia; sudden death occurred in 9, and ileus in 8. These three were thought to be the most important and characteristic causes of death in severely handicapped patients. In recent years, deaths due to pneumonia have decreased and those due to ileus have disappeared, but deaths due to malignant neoplasm have begun to be recognized. There were also some deaths from intracranial hemorrhage in young children, and some deaths from tracheal bleeding in those who had tracheal tubes. These two were also important causes of death in the patients. Sudden death had certain characteristics: most cases were adolescent or young patients with mixed quadriplegia who were sensitive to environmental changes and often showed marked hypertonia by athetosis, and in addition, all of their acute changes occurred between 5 and 8 a.m. or between 6 and 9 p.m.