During the course of a diagnostic and therapeutic survey of dementia praecox at the Worcester State Hospital, a series of one or more determinations of the galactose tolerance in 135 untreated male patients has been accumulated. The group constitutes a fairly representative cross section of the male schizophrenic population in such an institution. The ages range from 16 to 63 years, the periods of hospitalization from one week to twenty-three years.
This study of the galactose tolerance is a part of a larger study directed toward an attempt to secure further light on two major problems: Are there any metabolic peculiarities by which the schizophrenic psychosis can be characterized? Within the schizophrenic group, are there any characteristic metabolic differences among the various subgroups? Such differences, if present, would be of obvious aid in differential diagnosis and of possible prognostic value.
THE GALACTOSE TEST
The galactose tolerance test has been selected