Acta psychiat. scand. (1975) 51, 88-91 Department of Psychiatry (Head: George Winokur, M.D.), University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, U.S.A.
S E X C H R O M A T I N ANOMALY A M O N G C H I N E S E PSYCHIATRIC I N P A T I E N T S C O M P A R E D TO S C H O O L C H I L D R E N M. T. TWANG
In a study of sex chromatin abnormality among Chinese psychiatric inpatients, buccal smears were examined from a total of 1,253 psychiatric inpatients (639 males and 614 females). One male psychiatric inpatient (1.6/1OOO) was chromatin positive (+ve); two female psychiatric inpatients (3.3/1OOO) were found to have two sex chromatin bodies (+ ve). The lower rate for male inpatients in comparison to Chinese schoolboys (2.3/1000) is thought to reflect a higher rate of mental subnormality in the primary schoolchildren. This is considered attributable to the special nature of the school system and psychiatric patient facilities in Taiwan. The higher rate for female inpatients in comparison with the schoolgirls (0.5/ 1OOO) tends to indicate a predisposition to mental disorder in favor of psychosis associated with double sex chromatin abnormality in the female.
+
- Chinese populations males and females - psychiatric inpatients - schoolchildren.
K e y words. Sex chromatin abnormality
A higher rate of sex chromatin abnormality for various institutionalized psychiatric populations than for the general population has been reported in several studies from many different countries (Court Brown (1969), Forssrnan (1970)). The purpose of the present paper is to report the results of such a study among Chinese in Taiwan.
MATERIAL AND METHODS The frequency of sex chromatin abnormality among Chinese in Taiwan was investigated by simultaneously examining, with the same techniques, both males and females from a population of psychiatric inpatients and a population of schoolchildren (Tsuang & Tsuang (1972), Tsuang (1974)). During a 4-year period from August, 1967, to July, 1971, all patients consecutively admitted to the psychiatric wards of the Department of Neurology
and Psychiatry, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, underwent buccal smear examination. In addition to the 921 patients (437 males and 484 females) thus obtained from the University Hospital where most patients were acute psychotics, 332 patients (202 males and 130 females) consecutively admitted to Taipei Jen-Chi Mental Hospital from September, 1970, to July, 1971 were also examined. This latter hospital admits a high percentage of chronic patients from the lower socioeconomic classes. RESULTS The overall results of the present study comparing sex chromatin abnormality in a population of psychiatric inpatients with a population of schoolchildren in Taiwan are shown in Table 1. Psychiatric inpatients
Mules. One of the 639 male patients (1.6/1000) was chromatin positive (16 %) with a karyotype of 47,XXY. This patient was admitted to Jen-Chi Mental Hospital because of chronic paranoid delusions. Females. Two of the female patients were found to be chromatin double positive. These two patients were admitted to the University Hospital because of acute psychotic symptoms with confusion. Chromosome studies on these two females showed that one (double sex chromatin bodies 7 %) had a karyotype of 47,XXX. However, the blood culture of the other female (double sex chromatin bodies 8 %) failed to grow. Two repeated buccal smear examinations on this patient showed double sex chromatin bodies in 8 % and 6 % of cells, respectively, so there is no question of the presence of the XXX complement. However, two subsequent chromosome examinations from peripheral blood failed to grow. At the time of the study, there were no facilities for examining chromosomes of fibroblasts in Taiwan. No other sex chromatin abnormalities were found among the female patients.
While it can be noted from Table 1 that the rate of sex chromatin abnormality among female psychiatric inpatients is more than six times higher than among schoolgirls, this difference does not reach statistical significance (P
S E X C H R O M A T I N ANOMALY A M O N G C H I N E S E PSYCHIATRIC I N P A T I E N T S C O M P A R E D TO S C H O O L C H I L D R E N M. T. TWANG
In a study of sex chromatin abnormality among Chinese psychiatric inpatients, buccal smears were examined from a total of 1,253 psychiatric inpatients (639 males and 614 females). One male psychiatric inpatient (1.6/1OOO) was chromatin positive (+ve); two female psychiatric inpatients (3.3/1OOO) were found to have two sex chromatin bodies (+ ve). The lower rate for male inpatients in comparison to Chinese schoolboys (2.3/1000) is thought to reflect a higher rate of mental subnormality in the primary schoolchildren. This is considered attributable to the special nature of the school system and psychiatric patient facilities in Taiwan. The higher rate for female inpatients in comparison with the schoolgirls (0.5/ 1OOO) tends to indicate a predisposition to mental disorder in favor of psychosis associated with double sex chromatin abnormality in the female.
+
- Chinese populations males and females - psychiatric inpatients - schoolchildren.
K e y words. Sex chromatin abnormality
A higher rate of sex chromatin abnormality for various institutionalized psychiatric populations than for the general population has been reported in several studies from many different countries (Court Brown (1969), Forssrnan (1970)). The purpose of the present paper is to report the results of such a study among Chinese in Taiwan.
MATERIAL AND METHODS The frequency of sex chromatin abnormality among Chinese in Taiwan was investigated by simultaneously examining, with the same techniques, both males and females from a population of psychiatric inpatients and a population of schoolchildren (Tsuang & Tsuang (1972), Tsuang (1974)). During a 4-year period from August, 1967, to July, 1971, all patients consecutively admitted to the psychiatric wards of the Department of Neurology
and Psychiatry, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, underwent buccal smear examination. In addition to the 921 patients (437 males and 484 females) thus obtained from the University Hospital where most patients were acute psychotics, 332 patients (202 males and 130 females) consecutively admitted to Taipei Jen-Chi Mental Hospital from September, 1970, to July, 1971 were also examined. This latter hospital admits a high percentage of chronic patients from the lower socioeconomic classes. RESULTS The overall results of the present study comparing sex chromatin abnormality in a population of psychiatric inpatients with a population of schoolchildren in Taiwan are shown in Table 1. Psychiatric inpatients
Mules. One of the 639 male patients (1.6/1000) was chromatin positive (16 %) with a karyotype of 47,XXY. This patient was admitted to Jen-Chi Mental Hospital because of chronic paranoid delusions. Females. Two of the female patients were found to be chromatin double positive. These two patients were admitted to the University Hospital because of acute psychotic symptoms with confusion. Chromosome studies on these two females showed that one (double sex chromatin bodies 7 %) had a karyotype of 47,XXX. However, the blood culture of the other female (double sex chromatin bodies 8 %) failed to grow. Two repeated buccal smear examinations on this patient showed double sex chromatin bodies in 8 % and 6 % of cells, respectively, so there is no question of the presence of the XXX complement. However, two subsequent chromosome examinations from peripheral blood failed to grow. At the time of the study, there were no facilities for examining chromosomes of fibroblasts in Taiwan. No other sex chromatin abnormalities were found among the female patients.
While it can be noted from Table 1 that the rate of sex chromatin abnormality among female psychiatric inpatients is more than six times higher than among schoolgirls, this difference does not reach statistical significance (P
