Summary 

The controversy about Robert Schumann's mental illness has never been satis­factorily resolved. Möbius' diagnosis of dementia praecox has been severely criticised by Gruhle, who regarded Schumann as a manic‑depressive succumbing finally to an organic brain disease, probably dementia paralytica. Subsequent reviewers have more or less adopted either the one or the other of these diagnoses, schizophrenia finding more favour recently.

    The present authors have re‑examined the available evidence and consider the interpretation of Gruhle to be preferred. The terminal psychosis presents unambigu­ous organic features, and may well have been a dementia paralytica, with atypical prodromata, but typical course and outcome. When that is eliminated from the picture, no signs or symptoms of schizophrenia remain to be accounted for. The earlier illnesses, both depressive and hypomanic, are essentially affective in sympto­matology and all ended in complete recovery.

References 

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