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Noun: catatonia  ,ka-tu'tow-nee-u
  1. A form of schizophrenia characterized by a tendency to remain in a fixed stuporous state for long periods; the catatonia may give way to short periods of extreme excitement
    "During his catatonia episodes, he would remain motionless for hours, followed by brief periods of frenzied activity";
    - catatonic schizophrenia, catatonic type schizophrenia
     
  2. Extreme tonus; muscular rigidity; a common symptom in catatonic schizophrenia
    "The patient's catatonia made it impossible for him to respond to external stimuli"

Derived forms: catatonias

Type of: dementia praecox [archaic], schizophrenia, schizophrenic disorder, schizophrenic psychosis, tone, tonicity, tonus

Encyclopedia: Catatonia