[Comparative clinico-psychological research on asthenic and sthenic remissions in attack-like schizophrenia]

Using a clinico-psychological approach, personality changes have been studied in 40 patients with attack-like schizophrenia presenting asthenic (n = 22) or sthenic (n = 18) types of remissions. The common regularities have been identified, namely personality alterations of a superficial level with the preservation of "the nucleus of personality". In an asthenic type of remission the defect is total and all the main components of the personality are involved. This variant of schizophrenic defect is distinguished by impairment of the motivational-stimulating component of mental activity without reduction in its other components (exhaustion, fatigue, etc.) characteristic of asthenic syndromes of other etiology. In a sthenic type of remission personality changes are partial.