TR Dening and GE Berrios
Fulbourn Hospital, Cambridge.
From: http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/abstract/165/6/808
BACKGROUND. Autoscopy is defined here as a visual experience where
the subject sees an image of him/herself in external space, viewed
from within his/her own physical body. This paper reviews the literature
both historically and conceptually, and includes a quantitative
study of accumulated cases. METHOD. Cases published since 1935
and meeting the above definition for autoscopy (n = 53) were included,
together with three personally-observed patients. A clinical protocol
was completed for each case, including information about the autoscopic
image. Cases were compared using non-parametric statistics on dichotomised
variables. RESULTS. There were 38 men and 18 women, with a mean
age of 39.5 years (range 13-78). Of the subjects, 33 (59%) had
a neurological illness, most frequently epilepsy (18 cases). Right
and left sided lesions were equally represented. Psychiatric disorder
was often present (33 cases, 59%), most commonly delirium, depression
or psychosis. The features of the images seen were diverse, but
speaking images were associated with younger age, male sex, psychotic
illness, longer duration of image, and hypnagogic/hypnopompic experiences.
CONCLUSIONS. Autoscopy may arise from a convergence of several
variables, including gender, personality factors, neurological
and/or psychiatric disease, exhaustion and dissociation, whose
interaction may override the normal inhibition of temporal lobe
activity. A cognitive neuropsychological hypothesis is proposed,
together with avenues for future research.