[Psychiatric and neurologic disturbances in thyroid disorders (author's transl)]

The effects of the thyroid gland upon the nervous system with neurologic-psychiatric symptoms are discussed. With hyperthyreosis in younger patients hyperactive and psychotic signs occur, in older patients so-called apathic thyreotoxicosis. Neurologically there appear acute and chronic thyreotoxic myopathies, paroxysmal paralyses, the so-called hyperthyreotic chorea and a series of disturbances of eye muscles. In a thyreotoxic crisis psychotic preliminaries may proceed to a coma. With hyperthyreoses there occur intellectual impairment, showing but also psychoses as well as multiple neurological defect syndromes and epileptic seizures. Neurological defects as a consequence of thyreostatic therapy are rare, mostly these are disturbances of periphal nerves.