Edelstyn, N.M.J 
ORCID: 0000-0002-6795-0145, Di Rosa, E, Prabhu, S and Oyebode, F
(2024)
'Cotard’s: a controlled single case study of putative perceptual, cognitive and psychological risk factors.'
Neurocase.
(Forthcoming)
Abstract
In this controlled case study, we report the psychological and neuropsychological features in a 55-year-old female (D.R.) with a history of Cotard’s. Her nihilistic delusion was marked by the belief that her torso had dissolved, and food passed directly from her mouth into her legs which were hollow. Her delusion developed in the context of major depressive disorder (with psychotic features), which was diagnosed by a certified psychiatrist (F.O.). During the prodromal phase, D.R. experienced distortion of body parts and abnormal somatosensory sensations which exhibited a spatial correlation with the somatosensory homunculus and areas of heightened sensory innervation. During remission, low-level visual perceptual impairments in identifying degraded letters, object silhouettes and matching unfamiliar faces viewed under different lighting conditions and or different angles, that strikingly dissociated from an otherwise intact neuropsychological profile. Additionally, subtle manifestations of internally generated bodily signals, such as distortion, peculiar tastes, and feelings of uncleanness, were noted, along with an external attribution style. Collectively, these features are posited to represent stable or mediating vulnerability factors rather than transient indicators of dysfunction. This observation aligns with the notion that organic or functional involvement in Cotard’s manifests when information processing systems are subjected to high-stress levels during the prodromal and active phases of functional disorders. Inherent weaknesses within information processing systems and high-level attribution biases may be artificially exposed under direct measurement by challenging the processing systems with specific stimuli and tasks that are particularly challenging. The findings are discussed in reference to models of delusion formation.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| UN SDGs: | Goal 3: Good Health and Well-Being |
| Keywords: | Cotard’s, sensory homunculus, prodromal, remission, neuropsychology, attribution bias, visual perceptual impairment, body distortion |
| Divisions: | School of Sciences |
| Date Deposited: | 02 Dec 2024 16:11 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Dec 2024 16:11 |
| ISSN: | 1355-4794 |
| URI / Page ID: | https://researchspace.bathspa.ac.uk/id/eprint/16713 |
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