THE EFFECT OF ARTIFICIALLY RAISED METABOLIC RATE ON THE ELECTRO-ENCEPHALOGRAM OF SCHIZOPHRENIC PATIENTS1

From a study of the ‘10 per second’ (alpha) rhythm from the human occipital cortex in relation to temperature variations, Hoagland (1) pointed out that the frequency of the alpha waves under standard conditions is apparently proportional to the rate of respiration of the brain cells. The direct relationship of the lowering of blood sugar (2) to the alpha frequency is in accord with this view. Santenoise (3) has produced evidence which indicates that the thyroid apparatus is involved in cerebral activity. The present report is concerned with the investigation of this problem by the study of the effects on alpha frequency of elevation of the basal metabolic rate by massive doses of thyroxin. This paper is also part of a larger study, now in progress at the Worcester State Hospital, on the physiological and psychiatric changes in deteriorated schizophrenics by hyperthyroidization and hyperthyroxinization.