[Neuro-psychiatric aspects of gastrointestinal disease (author's transl)]

On principle one has to distinguish between inflammatory (infectious) and non-inflammatory intestinal diseases. These may affect merely certain parts of the gastrointestinal tract or influence the entire digestive system. Leading symptoms of all these diseases are disturbances of intestinal motility and of secretion, both causing diarrhoea or, rarely, constipation. The clinical picture can be acute or chronic. Acute manifestations, especially with high temperatures, include various florid psychopathological phenomena of an exogenous type of reaction. Chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal system do not show the above-mentioned picture. Very rarely encephalopathy causes organic psychosyndromes. Neurological findings point to lesions of the peripheral nerves (polyneuropathy), funicular defects within the spinal cord (funicular myelitis) and, very rarely, to encephalopathy. Syndromes of polyneuritis can be seen in acute, as well as in chronic enteropathies. Spinal lesions are only found in cases with chronic gastro-intestinal disease. With the exception of funicular myelosis in genuine pernicious anaemia (here parenteral substitution with vitamin B 12 is the therapy of choice) -- all gastroenterogenous neurological signs are only minimally accounted for by disturbances of B 1 and B 12 absorption. These substances should be used only in combination with other agents combating the basic disease.