[Age of onset and familial occurrence of manic-depressive psychosis].

In order to test the hypothesis that age of onset of manic-depressive psychosis may be associated with family history, the authors investigated 479 clinical records of patients suffering from affective disorders and admitted to Hospital during the period 1966-1981. Given the retrospective nature of the study, standardized diagnostic criteria were not possible. A positive family history of psychopathological disorders has been found associated with an early age of onset in comparison with a negative family history; the bipolar type has been found associated with an early age of onset in comparison with the unipolar type.

[Somatopsychologic correlations in gynecologic surgery].

Surgical interventions generally generate irrational fantasies and hidden anxieties concerning the body image, the sexual identity and the Ego identity. Some defense mechanisms are then utilized, tending to preserve the physical and psychic integrity, particularly when, as in gynaecological surgery, the interested organs are charged with important symbolic significance. The social, psychological and cultural aspects of gynaecological surgery necessarily involved three subjects: the patient her family, and the physician; each of them plays an important role for the success of every surgical operation.