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Krahl A, Schifferdecker M, Beveridge A. Carl Wernicke and the concept of 'elementary symptom'. Hist Psychiatry. 1998;9(36):503-8doi: 10.1177/0957154X9800903605.
Krahl, A., Schifferdecker, M., & Beveridge, A. (1998). Carl Wernicke and the concept of 'elementary symptom'. History of psychiatry, 9(36), 503-8. https://doi.org/10.1177/0957154X9800903605
Krahl, A, et al. "Carl Wernicke and the concept of 'elementary symptom'." History of psychiatry vol. 9,36 (1998): 503-8. doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/0957154X9800903605
Krahl A, Schifferdecker M, Beveridge A. Carl Wernicke and the concept of 'elementary symptom'. Hist Psychiatry. 1998 Dec;9(36):503-8. doi: 10.1177/0957154X9800903605. PMID: 11623615.
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Hist Psychiatry. 1998 Dec;9(36):503-8. doi: 10.1177/0957154X9800903605.

Carl Wernicke and the concept of 'elementary symptom'.

History of psychiatry

A Krahl, M Schifferdecker, A Beveridge

Affiliations

  1. Klinik und Poliklinik fur Neurologie und Psychiatrie, Koln, Germany.

PMID: 11623615 DOI: 10.1177/0957154X9800903605

Abstract

Examination of contemporary medical conference papers reveal that the German clinician, Carl Wernicke, conducted a unique on-going inquiry into psychiatric nosology. Wernicke was searching for what he called the elementary symptoms of mental disorder, or, in other words, the single psychopathological feature, from which all others arose. From 1892 onwards, he postulated a variety of such elementary symptoms. Wernicke's theory makes sense in terms of such categories as anxiety-psychosis and hallucinosis. His work contrasts with that of Kraepelin and also with modern diagnostic criteria. Neither Wernicke nor his followers pursued the theory of elementary symptoms, but an examination of his work sheds light on modern ideas about diagnosis.

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