Psychotic forms of atypical autism in children
: The aim of the study was to determine clinical borders of psychotic forms of atypical autism in children, its psychopathological and age-specific manifestations as well as nosological peculiarities and to specify its pathogenetic features. Eighty patients with childhood endogenous autism, Rett syndrome, fragile X syndrome, Down syndrome have been studied during 14 years. The study showed that psychoses similar by symptoms and course, which are characterized by attacks and regressive-catatonic disorders, may develop in the course of atypical autism. These psychoses develop on the background of dysontogenesis with consequent replacement of the following stages: autistic, regressive, catatonic, with returning to the autistic stage between attacks. Psychopathological similarity of these psychoses in different disorders correlated with EEG changes of the same type (appearance of the marked I-rhythm at the regressive stage of psychosis).