[Activity of the sympatho-adrenal system in patients with hysterical psychopathy and psychasthenia].

The paper is concerned with studies of the sympathoadrenal system activity by the indices of urine excretion of catecholamine and dofa in patients with hysterical and psychasthenic psychopathy. The disorders inherent in each of the groups are demonstrated. The patients with hysterical psychopathy show an exhaustion of all links in the catecholamine metabolism, while the patients with psychasthenical psychopathy an exhaustion of the noradrenaline link. In attempting to explain the mechanisms of disturbed activity in the sympathoadrenal system in both groups the role of the functional state of nonspecific activizing brain systems was taken into consideration.