Psychogenic Polydipsia

 

                                                                             Osmosis  

 

 

 

 

Polydipsia

 

 

 

 

Water intoxication was first recognized in medical literature in the early 20th century, but became widely discussed after cases in:

• Psychiatric hospitals (psychogenic polydipsia)
• Endurance sports medicine (1980s–1990s)

 

 

Psychogenic Polydipsia

 

 

 

 One of the first documented reports 

 

Compulsive water drinking in a psychiatric patient 

  

Title: Water intoxication in a mental case
Author: H. S. Barahal
Journal: Psychiatric Quarterly, Year: 1938 

 

 

 

• Described a psychiatric patient who drank excessive water
• Developed confusion, seizures, and coma
• Recognized dilution of body fluids as the cause

This paper is often cited as the first clear report of psychogenic polydipsia causing water intoxication.

 

                                                                    Pathophysiology

 

                                           Hyponatremia → seizures → coma → death.

 

 

                                                                            

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