ECOPRAXY: what it is, causes and treatment

Echopraxia is defined as the involuntary and spasmodic imitation of the movements carried out by another person, even when not required: it manifests itself semi-automatically and is independent of the patient's intuition. It is a subset of imitative behavior, an essential developmental element in social learning, whose persistence or recurrence after a certain age, however, it may be a sign of brain dysfunction underlying. With this Psychology-Online article we are going to see the characteristics of echopraxia, what exactly it is, its causes and possible treatment.

Index

1. What is echopraxia
2. Disorders in which echopraxia appears
3. Causes of echopraxia
4. Treatments for echopraxia

First of all, to understand what echopraxia is, we will see the definition of echopraxia through history and according to various authors.

The echopraxia was first described by the psychiatrist Emil kraepelin at the end of the XIX century as a particular form of "ecofenomenon":

• of vocalizations (echolalia, the most common of the ecophenomena)
• of words (ecopalilalia)
• of actions, movements (echopraxia)
• of actions or words (ecopathy)
• of facial expressions (ecomymy)
• written or written words (ultrasound)
• physically or mentally, tracing the outlines of objects (ekoplakia)
• involving sign language, described in an individual with Tourette syndrome (echolalyoplasia)
• of words or sounds in thought (ecology)

The definition of echopraxia is the next: imitation or repetition of body movements. Some examples of echopraxia are imitating another person by walking, moving an arm, shaking the head ...

According Eugen bleulerFurthermore, echopraxia also manifests a certain cognitive rigidity that prevents the patient from "moving away from an idea conceived "and that forces him to repeat an action already carried out, instead of emitting the most appropriate behavior or necessary.

Ecoppraxia is not a disorder as such but a symptom that can appear in different types of disorders, which we will see below.

The echopraxia may be concomitant with a variety of disorders: echopraxia, in fact, serves as a diagnostic marker for specific disorders of the developmental, psychiatric and neurological due to the frenzied incidence of involuntary movements or imitation of gestures associated with certain disorders.

Echopraxia has long been recognized as a fundamental characteristic of the Tourette syndrome, and is considered a complex tic, but it also occurs inautism spectrum disorders, on the schizophrenia, the catatonia and the aphasia.

In addition, it can also manifest itself during states of fatigue, blurred vision or in other conditions such as ganser syndrome, as well as other neurological disorders and frontal lobe diseases. Culture-specific syndromes that may show echopraxia include Latah, Amurakh, and Imu; has also been observed in subjects epileptics, with dementia Y autoimmune disorders, but individuals can display eco-practical behaviors that are indiscriminate or selective in relation to their environment.

The neural mechanism involved in echopraxia appears to differ from true voluntary imitation: in contrast to nature involuntary and spasmodic of echopraxia, voluntary imitation is often a cornerstone of the typical development associated with increase. Why does echopraxia occur? The main causes of echopraxia are the following:

• Echopraxia is different from mirror movements: this phenomenon is observed when the identical simultaneous movement of one hand accompanies the voluntary movement of the other hand; mirror movements may be the result of a delay in the development of inhibition rather than a deficiency in inhibition resulting in echopraxia.
• A deficiency in inhibition resulting in echopraxia can also be seen in individuals with frontal lobe lesions: this can damage the regulation system It helps individuals decide whether their body should move in response to stimuli or if body movements should be inhibited. Consequently, individuals with frontal lobe lesions and corresponding inhibition deficits may move in involuntary response to external movements or gestures.
• A theoretical cause, still within the scientific debate, is the role of the mirror neurons in echopraxia, a group of neurons that can influence imitative behaviors.

Generally, before starting treatment, an attempt is made to understand the underlying cause of echopraxia by observing the behavior of the person in question.

There are no specific tests to diagnose echopraxia: it is usually not diagnosed before the age of three, and it is easier to detect in adults or the elderly, since in children up to 5 years it is quite common to imitate the actions of others, and therefore it is not possible to understand if it is only imitative learning. Sometimes a copycat behavior similar to echopraxia is also present in healthy subjects (such as yawning if someone yawns), but these are not symptoms of illness.

Treatment of echopraxia is generally directed at the condition that includes it, typically focused on symptom relief through a regimen of behavioral and pharmaceutical interventions, but also educational and psychotherapy.

• For example: depending on the severity of symptoms, patients with Tourette syndrome may benefit from neuroleptic and antihypertensive medications, as well as biofeedback and interventions behavioral; In addition, special educational services are typically available to patients with autistic echopraxia, with other health problems, physical disability or disability emotional / behavioral.

There is currently no known cure for many of the disorders associated with echopraxia. Increased use of biofeedback and behavioral interventions, in combination with advances in medicine, can further help people with echopraxia to control involuntary symptoms that they experience.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Ecopraxia: what it is, causes and treatment, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.

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