Related Experiment Videos
Self-injury and violence in people with severe learning disabilities
Background:
Psychiatry in severe and profound learning disability is essentially behavioural psychiatry. Some clinical and research observations of disorders of behaviour in this group are summarised in this study.
Method:
After inspection of the literature, I postulated a clinical syndrome of violence and self-injury in the severely learning disabled. A check-list of behavioural symptoms was developed and used in a community survey.
Results:
Behaviour, assessed by the check-list, supported the existence of organic behaviour disorder, as did small-scale psychophysiological testing.
Conclusions:
Self-injury is strongly associated with violence, and with severe and profound learning disability. Pathophysiology of violence and self-injury may include high levels of psychophysiological arousal demonstrated by unstable EEGs. Reduction of arousal by antipsychotic medication is associated with clinical improvement in violent and self-injurious behaviours.