Clinical and Neurochemical Characteristics of Mentally Ill Patients with Aggressive Misconduct

Abstract

Aim: To analyse clinical, biochemical and social characteristics of patients with severe mental disorders and aggressive behaviour. Design: observational cross-sectional study. Materials and methods. We examined 110 patients of 18–60 years of age with severe mental disorders and persistent aggressive behavior who committed acts of violence. For examination, we used clinical psychopathologic, psychometric, laboratory, mathematical and statistical methods. Results. The subjects had disturbed upbringing with signs of violence, undereducation, family and occupational maladaptation, conflict relations with people around them, financial insecurity. Clinically, they demonstrated marked behavioural disorders with explosive episodes associated with hetero-aggressive trends, with decreased intellectual and volitional control and lack of compliance. There were statistically significant (p < 0.05) differences in biological parameters of a majority of patients vs. reference values and correlation between psychometric and biochemical data. Conclusion. The results contribute to the identification of predictors of socially dangerous violent behaviour in persons with severe mental disorders. Keywords: severe mental disorders, aggressive behaviour, violent misconduct, predictors of social danger.