Abstract
The koro syndrome is a triad of deep-seated fear of penile shrinkage, its disappearance into the abdomen and consequent death. The disorder, which is considered culture related, is endemic in South-East Asia and China, where it occurs in both epidemic and sporadic form. In the western hemisphere single cases are occasionally encountered. The association with psychiatric pathology in sporadic cases of koro has been well described, but lately attention has been drawn to systemic or neurologic involvement in these patients. The clinical, historical and cultural features of koro, as well as therapeutic strategies, are discussed.
Highlights
The term koro denotes a culture-related syndrome predominantly prevalent in South-East Asia and China
Sporadic cases of koro have surfaced in the western hemisphere, often in association with an underlying psychiatric or organic disorder
Sixteen sporadic cases of Koro published in the literature since 1982 were collected and added to a previous compilation of 16 patients
Summary
The term koro denotes a culture-related syndrome predominantly prevalent in South-East Asia and China. Suk-yeong (Cantonese) and suo-yang (Mandarin), ("retraction of the male sexual organ"; Yap, 1965; Tseng et at., 1988), shin-kuei ("heart defect") or shern-kuei ("spiritual defect") are descriptive Chinese terms employed for the syndrome (Yap, 1965). In view of recent non-Chinese epidemics, as well as reports ofsporadic cases in the West, the attenuated term "cultur~ related psychiatric disorder" has been suggested (Tseng et al, 1988).
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