home
news
columns
features
Cyberpsychosis: A Synopsis of the Disorder
by James D. Hudson (jdhudson@halcyon.com)
Sumaro Takahara, M.D.
Fuchi Industrial Systems, Inc.
Constantin Sergey’ich Tomorov, M.D.
Moscow State University, CIS
R. Alexander Carrington, Ph.D.
Cornell University, UCAS
INTRODUCTION
One of the most onerous of public myths is the frequency of “cyberpsychosis” and its impact on modern society. An explosion of research has been undertaken in the last five years, both with corporate and federal funding, in order to quantify, examine, and treat this illness. This article is submitted in order to summarize the most recent findings and to provide the mental health practitioner a set of treatment options from which to choose.
SYMPTOMATOLOGY
According to the DSM-IX-R, cyberpsychosis “is an undefined schizoid-like disorder caused by either invasive surgery, the implantation of cyberware, or a combination of these two events”. Cyberpsychosis, like all psychoses, manifests as the following symptoms: sensory hallucinations, delusional thinking (especially delusion of persecution and other paranoia complexes), tangential thought patterns, and/or disrupted physiological patterns, such as eating and sleeping.
Diagnosis of cyberpsychosis is a difficult task, and most likely happens more frequently than the incidence of the disorder actually merits. The psychotic behavior is usually noticed quickly by the clinician, and after learning the patient has had cyberware implanted, he or she makes what appears to be the appropriate diagnosis. However, this does not discount the possibility of drug- or chip-addicted schizoid behavior, or the possibility that the behavior might have a pre-surgical cause (such as a traumatic event or a genetic predisposition to psychotic illness).
Also seen frequently are violent outbursts, possibly due to neurological degradation caused by the cyberware. This is the most common reason these patients come to be in the care of professionals in the first place.
Clinicians are, therefore, urged to obtain a detailed background of their patients, run a full series of blood and neurological tests, and rule out other psychoses before giving the cyberpsychosis diagnosis. Also suggested are a standard set of projective psychological tests to determine the level of dysfunction in the patient.
POSSIBLE CAUSES
Although we know that cyberpsychosis is a version of schizo- phrenia caused by the implantation of cyberware, we are far from knowing the actual mechanisms involved in creating the mental disorder. Several theories have been put forth, each with their merits. A brief discussion on some of these theories is necessary before we can look at the treatment options.
Infection
It has been postulated that cyberpsychosis is actually the behavioral manifestation of a physiological infection. Much research has been done on this point, with emphasis being placed on bacterial infection of subcortical and limbic structures in the central nervous system. However, this theory has three important limitations: first, it does not account for cyberpsychosis caused solely by “bodyware” (e.g., muscle augmentation, dermal armor, and such), which is generally implanted with only minimal connections to the central nervous system, if any; second, similar effects are not noticed with the implantation of bioware; and third, treatment regimens of antibiotics have been largely ineffective.
Metal Poisoning
Similar to theories regarding Alzheimer’s Disease, some researchers believe that cyberpsychosis is caused by metal ions in the central nervous system disrupting activity in the cerebral cortex. Though this explanation is attractive in that it offers a potential easy cure for the afflicted, it must be discounted. The metals used in cyberware are inert, and do not form biological hazards when exposed to the environment inside a cranium.
An interesting, though little examined, point along these lines should be considered: although the physical properties of the cyberware might be safe, what of the nanites used in cyberware construction? These machines are supposed to be flushed from the body with other wastes, but what if they aren’t? Little research has been done with this concept in mind.
Neurotransmitter Imbalance
Currently the most popular explanation of cyberpsychosis, this explanation has a good deal of evidence to support it. Blood levels of those suffering from cyberpsychosis indicate much higher levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine than in other people. This same phenomenon also can indicate schizophrenia, though. Cyber- psychotics also have a much greater incidence of abnormal EEG wave patterns, especially alpha and theta complexes.
Cyberware implanted in the frontal and parietal lobes, and any of their associated subcortical structures, can be implicated in damage to dopaminergic neurons. Histologic and immunoassay studies have demonstrated that these nerve pathways are disrupted by the presence of cyberware in both central and peripheral nervous systems. Complicating the matter is the brain’s inability to reverse the changes wrought by cyberware implantation, even after that cyberware is removed.
TREATMENT OPTIONS
The most frequent method for treating cyberpsychosis is removal of the cyberware in conjunction with the administration of antipsychotic medication (haloperidol or chlorpromazine). The removal of the cyberware is usually academic as far as the mental illness is concerned; the damage has already been done. More appropriately, the cyberware is removed to prevent the patient from injuring the staff during treatment. It can be assumed that most orderlies and nurses would object to having to restrain a man with two cyberarms, especially if one held a weapon.
After the cyberware is removed, the disorder appears more like schizophrenia than anything else. The antipsychotic medication trial can help restore the patient to a functional level, but a return to pre-morbid functioning is impossible.
Another frequent treatment method is psychological therapy, though treatment results are generally poor. Psychotherapy indicates an ability to examine ones motives in an introspective manner, something that psychotic patients have rarely, if ever, been capable of doing.
CONCLUSION
Cyberpsychosis can best be understood as an artificially induced form of schizophrenia. It appears to be caused by implantation of cyberware, though the exact physiological mechanism as yet remains undetermined. Research points towards a disruption in the nerve pathways that use dopamine as the neurotransmitter. Treatment methods are more to alleviate psychotic symptoms rather than cure the disorder. Prognosis for a patient with this diagnosis is poor.
Sumaro Takahara is a neurosurgeon in the employ of Fuchi Industrial Systems, Inc. His specialty is in cyberware implantation and function, and he has pioneered many of the more innovative techniques in the field.
Constantin Tomorov is a psychiatrist currently teaching at Moscow State University. His research background includes psychotic behavior in cybernetically-enhanced chimpanzees, as well as treatment of chip-addicted patients.
Alexander Carrington is a neuropsychologist and chairman of the psychology department of Cornell University. His research focuses on the cognitive function of cybernetically-enhanced people, and how that function changes over time.