Skip to main content
Springer Nature Link
Log in

The definition and classification of Koro

  • Published:
Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Attempts at defining and classifying Koro have been undertaken by various researchers over at least the last fifty years without any consensus emerging to date. The occurrence of Koro, not only in different parts of the world but also in association with varied morbidities, has of late diluted its primary identity as a culture-bound syndrome. Further, the DSM-IIIR and ICD-10 provisions to include culture-bound syndromes like Koro are open to various diagnostic options. Consideration was given to have it included in DSM-IV One of the fundamental problems inherent in such attempts is the semantic confusion Koro generates in its basic phenomenological analysis. The present paper deals with some of these issues based on a historical analysis of world Koro literature, and with comments on the future research agendum.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+
from $39.99 /Month
  • Starting from 10 chapters or articles per month
  • Access and download chapters and articles from more than 300k books and 2,500 journals
  • Cancel anytime
View plans

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Explore related subjects

Discover the latest articles, books and news in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.

References

  • Adityanjee, A. M. Z., and M. Subramaniam 1991 Sporadic Koro and Marital Dysharmony. Psychopathology 24: 49–52.

    Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association 1980 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Third Edition. Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, D. N. 1990 Koro: The Genital Retraction Syndrome after Stroke. British Journal of Psychiatry 157: 142–144.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ang, P. C., and M. P. I. Weller 1984 Koro and Psychosis. British Journal of Psychiatry 145: 335.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arbitman, R. 1975 Koro in a Caucasian. Modem Medicine of Canada 30: 970–971.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baasher, T. A. 1963 The Influence of Culture on Psychiatric Manifestation. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 15: 51–52.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barrett, K. 1978 Koro in a Londoner. The Lancet 2, 8103: 1319.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beale, S., M. Lisper and B. Palm 1980 A Psychological Study of Patients seeking Augmentation Mammoplasty. British Journal of Psychiatry 136: 153–158.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bernstein, R. L., and A. C. Gaw 1990 Koro: Proposed Classification for DSM-IV American Journal of Psychiatry 147: 1670–1674.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berrios, G. E., and S. J. Morley 1984 Koro-like Symptom in a Non-Chinese Subject. British Journal of Psychiatry 145: 331–334.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bhatia, M. S., K. N. Thakur, R. Chadda and S. Shome 1992 Koro in Dhat Syndrome. Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry 8: 74–75.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blonk, J. C. 1985 Koro. Geneeskundig Tijdschrift voor Nederlandsch-Indie 35: 562–563.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brero, P. C. J. van 1986a Naar Aanleding van het Opstel over ‘Koro’ van den Heer J. C. Blonk in de Vorige Aflevering van dit Tijdschrift. Geneeskundig Tijdschrift voor Nederlandsch-Indie 36: 48–54.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1896b Koro, Eine Eigenthumliche Zwangsvorstellung. Allegemeine Zeitschrift fur Psychiatric and Medicin 53: 569–573.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burgeois, M. 1896 Un Koro Charentais (Transposition Ethnopsychiatrique), Annales MedicoPsychologiques 126: 749–751.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bychowski, G. 1943 Disorders of the Body Image in the Clinical Pictures of the Psychoses. Journal of the Nervous and Mental Disease 97: 310–334.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cantor, N., E. E. Smith, R. S. French and J. Mezzich 1980 Psychiatric Diagnosis as Prototype Categorization. Journal of Abnormal Psychology 89: 181–183.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chakraborty, P. K. 1982 Koro: A Peculiar Anxiety Neurosis (A Case Report). Indian Journal of Psychiatry 24: 192–193.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, E. 1991 Drug Induced Koro in a Non-Chinese Man. British Journal of Psychiatry 158: 721.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chowdhury, A. N. 1989a Penile Perception of Koro Patients. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 80: 183–186.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1989b Dysmorphic Penis-image Perception — the Root of Koro Vulnerability. A Longitudinal Study. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 80: 518–520.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1989c Biomedical Potential for Symptom Choice in Koro. International Journal of Social Psychiatry 35: 329–332.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1989d Koro among Kinship. Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry 5: 24–26.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1989e Neuroticism, Extraversion and Sex-Guilt Cognition in the Genesis of Koro. Journal of Indian Psychoanalytical Society 43: 57–64.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1989f Draw-a-Penis Test (DAPT). Journal of Personality and Clinical Studies 5: 97–100.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1990a Diagnostic Nosology of Koro. Journal of Personality and Clinical Studies 6: 207–209.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1990b Trait Anxiety Profile of Koro patients. Indian Journal of Psychiatry 32: 330–333.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1991a Medico-Cultural Cognition of Koro Epidemic: An Ethnographic Study. Journal of Indian Anthropological Society 26: 155–170.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1991b Dysmorphic Penile Perception in Koro. Indian Journal of Psychiatry 33: 48–51.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1991c Penis Root Perception of Koro Patients. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 84: 12–13.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1991d Penis Shaft Perception of Koro Patients. Journal of Indian Academy of Applied Psychology 17: 41–44.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1991e Role of Medical Cognition in Psychiatric Outbreaks: Study from North Bengal Koro Epidemic. Indian Journal of Behavioural Sciences 1: 64–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1991f Personality Profile of Koro Patients. Journal of Personality and Clinical Studies 7: 117–118.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992a Koro in Schizophrenia with a Case Report from an Industrial Set up. Industrial Psychiatry Journal 5(1): 47–59.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992b Clinical Analysis of 101 Koro Cases. Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry 8: 67–70.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992c Koro Social Response (Urban): A Longitudinal Study of North Bengal Koro Epidemic. Indian Journal of Psychiatry 34: 46–52.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992d Ego and the Body Image. Journal of Indian Psychoanalytical Society 46: 51–60.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992e Psychic Infectivity: The Role of Positive Illness Cognition in Psychiatric Epidemic. Journal of Personality and Clinical Studies 8: 125–128.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992f Koro in Affective Disorders with a Case Report from Industrial Set up. Industrial Psychiatry Journal 5(2): 71–83.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992g Psychopathosexuality in Koro Patients. Journal of Indian Academy of Applied Psychology 18: 57–60.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1993a Glans Penis Perception of Koro Patients. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 87: 355–357.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1993b Deviation in Penis Image. Journal of Sexual Health 3: 156–160.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1993c Psychiatric Morbidity and the Fox Connection. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 30: 399–401.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1993d Age Specific Trait Anxiety in Koro Patients. Journal of Personality and Clinical Studies 9: 15–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1994 Koro in Females — An Analysis of 48 cases. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 31: 369–380.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chowdhury, A. N., and D. J. Bagchi 1993 Koro in Heroin Withdrawal. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 25: 257–258.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chowdhury, A. N., and G. Banerjee 1995 Recurrent Koro in repeated withdrawal of IX Buprenorphine. Addiction (in press).

  • Chowdhury, A. N., and N. K. Bera 1994 Koro following Cannabis Smoking: Two Case Reports. Addiction 89: 1017–1020.

    Google Scholar 

  • , and N. K. Bera 1995 Koro in North Bengal Anew: An Unusual Case. Journal of Personality and Clinical Studies 11: 55–58.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chowdhury, A. N., and K. C. Rajbhandari 1994 Koro with Depression in Nepal. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 32: 87–90.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chowdhury, A. N., P. Pal, A. Chatterjee, M. Roy and B. B. Das Chowdhury 1988 Analysis of North Bengal Koro Epidemic with Three Years Followup. Indian Journal of Psychiatry 30: 69–72.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chowdhury, A. N., A. K. Nath and J. Chakraborty 1993 An Atypical Hysterical Epidemic in Tripura, India. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 30: 143–151.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chowdhury, A. N., G. Banerjee, K. D. Sen, N. K. Bera and N. K. Sharma 1994 Koro in West Bengal Again: Report of Nine Cases. Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry 10: 27–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Conolly, F. H., and M. Gipson 1978 Dysmorphophobia — A Long-term Study. British Journal of Psychiatry 132: 458–470.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cremona, A. 1981 Another Case of Koro in a Briton. British Journal of Psychiatry 138: 180–181.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crisp, A. 1981 Dysmorphophobia and the Search for Cosmetic Surgery. British Medical Journal 282: 1099–1100.

    Google Scholar 

  • Damodaran, S. S., and S. H. Nizamie 1993 “Incomplete Koro”- A Forerunner for Mood Disorders: Two Case Reports. Indian Journal of Psychiatry 35: 60–62.

    Google Scholar 

  • Devan, G. S., and S. H. Ong 1987 Koro and Schizophrenia in Singapore. British Journal of Psychiatry 150: 106–107.

    Google Scholar 

  • Devereux, G 1956 Normal and Abnormal: The Key Problem of Psychiatric Anthropology. In Some Uses of Anthropology: Theoretical and Applied. J. B. Casagrande and T. Gladwin, eds., pp. 3–48. Washington: Anthropological Society of Washington.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dow, T. N., and D. A. Silver 1973 Drug Induced Koro Syndrome. Journal of the Florida Medical Association 60: 32–33.

    Google Scholar 

  • Durst, R., and P. Rosca-Rebaudengo 1988 Koro Secondary to a Tumour of the Corpus Callosum. British Journal of Psychiatry 153: 251–254.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ede, A 1976 Koro in an Anglo Saxon Canadian. Canadian Psychiatric Association Journal 21: 389–391.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, J. G. 1970 The Koro Pattern of Depersonalization in an American Schizophrenic Patient. American Journal of Psychiatry 126: 1171–1173.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, J. W. 1984 Indigenous Koro: A Genital Retraction Syndrome of Insular South East Asia: A Critical Review. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry 8: 1–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Faergeman, P. 1963 Psychogenic Psychoses. London: Butterworth.

    Google Scholar 

  • Good, B. J. 1987 Editorial. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry 11: 1–2.

    Google Scholar 

  • Good, B. J., and A. M. Kleinman 1985 Culture and Anxiety: Cross-Cultural Evidence for the Patterning of Anxiety Disorders. In Anxiety and the Anxiety Disorders. H. Tuma and J. Mazur, eds., pp. 297–323, New York: L. Earlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gwee, A. L. 1963 Koro — A Cultural Disease. Singapore Medical Journal 4: 119–122.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1968 Koro — Its Origin and Nature as a Disease Entity. Singapore Medical Journal 9: 3–6.

    Google Scholar 

  • Haslam, M. T. 1980 Medicine and Orient: Shen-k'uei Syndrome. British Journal of Sexual Medicine December. 31–36.

  • Hay, G. 1983 Paranoia and Dysmorphophobia. British Journal of Psychiatry 142: 309.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hes, J. P., and G. Nassi 1977 Koro in a Yemenite and a Georgian Jewish Immigrant. Confinia Psychiatrica 20: 180–184.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heyman, I., and T. S. Fahy 1992 Koro-like Symptoms in a Man Infected with the Human Immuno-deficiency Virus. British Journal of Psychiatry 160: 119–121.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hollander, E., M. R. Liecowitz, R. Winchel, A. Klumker and D. F. Klein 1989 Treatment of Body-dysmorphic Disorder with Serotonin Reuptake Blockers. American Journal of Psychiatry 146: 768–770.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ifabumuyi, O. I., and G. G. C. Rwegellera 1979 Koro in a Nigerian Male Patient: A Case Report. African Journal of Psychiatry 5: 103–105.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ilechukwu, S. T. C. 1988 Koro-Like Syndromes in Nigeria. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 25: 310–312.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ivanov, A. A. 1885 Cited in Raven (1886).

  • Jenike, M. A. 1984 A Case Report of Successful Treatment of Dysmorphophobia with Tranylcypromine. American Journal of Psychiatry 141: 1463–1464.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jilek, W. G. 1982 Culture — “Pathoplastic” or “Pathogenic”? A Key Question of Comparative Psychiatry. Curare 5: 57–68.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1986 Epidemics of “Genital Shrinking” (Koro): Historical Review and Report of a Recent Outbreak in South China. Curare 9: 269–282.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jilek W. G., and L. Jilek-Aall 1977 A Koro Epidemic in Thailand. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 14: 57–59.

    Google Scholar 

  • , and L. Jilek-Aall 1985 The Metamorphosis of “Culture-Bound” Syndromes. Social Science and Medicine 21: 205–210.

    Google Scholar 

  • Joseph, A. B. 1986 Koro: Computed Tomography, and Brain Electrical Activity Mapping in Two Patients. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 47: 430–432.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kennedy, B., and G. R. Flick 1991 Classification of Koro. American Journal of Psychiatry 148: 1278–1279.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirmayer, L. J. 1984 Culture, Affect and Somatization. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 21: 237–262.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1991 The Place of Culture in Psychiatric Nosology: Taijin Kyofusho and DSM-IIIR. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 179: 19–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992 From the Witch's Hammer to the Oedipus Complex: Castration Anxiety in Western Society. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 29: 133–138.

    Google Scholar 

  • Khubalkar, P., and O. P. Gupta 1984 Psychodynamics of Koro (A Case Report). Indian Journal of Psychiatry 26: 180–181.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kobler, F. 1948 Description of an Acute Castration Fear, based on Superstition. Psychoanalytic Review 35: 285–289.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koro Study Team 1969 The Koro Epidemic in Singapore. Singapore Medical Journal 10: 234–242.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kraepelin, E. 1921 Manic-Depressive Insanity and Paranoia. Edinburgh: Livingstone.

    Google Scholar 

  • Langness, L. L. 1967 Hysterical Psychosis: The Cross-Cultural Evidence. American Journal of Psychiatry 124: 143–152.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lapierre, Y. D. 1972 Koro in a French Canadian. Canadian Psychiatric Association Journal 17: 333–334.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lin, T. Y. 1982 Culture and Psychiatry: A Chinese Perspective. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 16: 235–245.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lucieer, W. M. 1984-The Bitter Taste of Liberty. A Study in Ethnopsychiatry. Psychopathologic Africane 1985 20: 17–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lukianowicz, N. 1967 “Body Image” Disturbances in Psychiatric Disorders. British Journal of Psychiatry 113: 31–47.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malinick, C., J. A. Flaherty and T. Jobe 1985 Koro: How Culturally Specific? International Journal of Social Psychiatry 31: 67–73.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marks, I., and M. Lader 1973 Anxiety States (Anxiety Neurosis): A Review. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 156: 3–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer-Gross, W. 1935 On Depersonalization. British Journal of Medical Psychology 51: 335–342.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mellor, C. 1988 Depersonalization and Self-Perception. British Journal of Psychiatry 153 (Suppl. 2): 15–19.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mo, K. M. 1986 “Koro” or Korophobia? Cited in Jilek (1986).

  • Modai, I., H. Munitz and D. Aizenberg 1986 Koro in an Israeli Male. British Journal of Psychiatry 149: 503–506.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mun, C. T. 1968 Epidemic Koro in Singapore. British Medical Journal 1: 640–641.

    Google Scholar 

  • Munro, A., and J. Chamara 1982 Monosymptomatic Hypochondriacal Psychosis: A Diagnostic Checklist Based on 50 cases of the Disorders. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 27: 374–376.

    Google Scholar 

  • Murphy, H. B. M. 1982 Comparative Psychiatry. Springer Verlag, Berlin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nandi, D. N., G. Banerjee, S. Bera and S. Nandi 1984 Mode of Spread of Epidemic Koro in a Village in West Bengal. Indian Journal of Psychiatry 26: 331–334.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ngui, P W. 1969 The Koro Epidemic in Singapore. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 3: 263–266.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oyebode, F., R. Jamieson, J. Mullaney and K. Davison 1986 Koro — A Psychophysiological Dysfunction? British Journal of Psychiatry 148: 212–214.

    Google Scholar 

  • Palthe, W. P. M. van 1934 Koro, een Eigenaardige Angstneurose. Geneeskundig Tijdschrift voor Nederlandsch-Indie 74. 1713–1720.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1937 It Significanto Forense del Koro. Archivio di Anthropologica Criminale, Psychiatrica Medicina Legale 57: 173–182.

    Google Scholar 

  • Prince, R. 1988 Review: Social Phobia in Japan and Korea. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 25: 145–150.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1992 Koro and the Fox Spirit on Hainan Island (China). Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 29: 119–132.

    Google Scholar 

  • Prince, R., and F. Tcheng-Laroche 1987 Culture-Bound Syndromes and International Disease Classification. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry 11: 3–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raven, T. 1886 Retraction of the Penis. The Lancet 2: 250.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rawson, P., and L. Legeza 1973 Tao: The Chinese Philosophy of Change. London: Thames & Hudson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rin, H. 1963 Koro: A Consideration on Chinese Concepts of Illness and Case Illustrations. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 15: 23–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1965 A Study of the Aetiology of Koro in respect to the Chinese Concept of Illness. International Journal of Social Psychiatry 11: 7–13.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosenthal, S., and P. A. Rosenthal 1982 Koro in an Adolescent: Hypochondriasis as a Stress Response. Adolescent Psychiatry 10: 523–531.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rubin R. T. 1982 Koro (Shook Yang) — A Culture-Bound Psychogenic Syndrome. In Extraordinary Disorders of Human Behavior. C. T. H. Friedmann and R. A. Faguet, eds., pp. 155–172. New York: Plenum Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sachdev, P. S. 1985 Koro Epidemic in North-East India. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 19: 433–438.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saijad, S. H. A. 1991 Classification of Koro. American Journal of Psychiatry 148: 1279.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scher, M. 1987 Koro in a Native Born Citizen of the U.S. International Journal of Social Psychiatry 33: 42–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schilder, P. 1935 The Images and Appearance of the Human Body. London: Kegan Paul.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shaw, W. C. 1981 Folklore Surrounding Facial Deformity and the Origins of Facial Prejudice. British Journal of Plastic Surgery 34: 237–246.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shukla, G. D., and D. H. Mishra 1981 Koro-like Syndrome: A Case Report. Indian Journal of Psychiatry 23: 96–97.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sims, A. C. P. 1988 Towards the Unification of Body Image Disorders. British Journal of Psychiatry 153 (Suppl. 2): 51–56.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simons, R. C., and C. C. Hughes, eds. 1985 The Culture Bound Syndromes: Folk Illnesses of Psychiatric and Anthropological Interest. Boston: D. Reidel Publishing Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smyth, M. G., and C. Dean 1992 Capgras and Koro. British Journal of Psychiatry 161: 121–123.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stein, D. J., M. Frenkel and E. Hollander 1991 Classification of Koro. American Journal of Psychiatry 148: 1279–1280.

    Google Scholar 

  • Suwanlert, S., and D. Coates 1978 Epidemic Koro in Thailand- Clinical and Social Aspects. Transcultural Psychiatric Research Review 16: 64–66.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tan, E. S. 1969 The Symptomatology of Anxiety in West Malaysia. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 3: 271–276.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thase, M. E., C. F. Reynolds and J. R. Jennings 1988 Nocturnal Penile Tumescence is Diminished in Depressed Man. Biological Psychiatry 24: 33–46.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tseng, W. S., K. M. Mo, J. Hsu, L. S. Li, L. W. Ou, G. Q. Chen and D. W. Jiang 1988 A Sociocultural Study of Koro Epidemic in guangdong, China. American Journal of Psychiatry 145: 1538–1543.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tseng, W. S., K. M. Mo, L. S. Li, G. Q. Chen, L. W. Qu, and H. B. Zheng 1992 Koro Epidemic in Guangdong, China. A Questionnaire Survey. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 180: 117–123.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turnier, L., and G. Chouinard 1990 Effect anti-Koro d'un Antidepresseur Tricychlique. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 35: 331–333.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vorstman, A. H. 1897 ‘Koro’ in de Westerafdeeling van Borneo. Geneeskundig Tijdschrift voor Nederlandsch-Indie 37: 499–505.

    Google Scholar 

  • Waldenberg, S. S. A. 1981 Koro. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 26: 140–141.

    Google Scholar 

  • Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language. 1989 New York: Portland.

  • Werner, E. T. C. 1961 A Dictionary of Chinese Mythology. New York: The Julian Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wheeler, E. O., P. D. White, W. E. Reed and M. E. Cohen 1950 Neurocirculatory Asthenia (Anxiety Neurosis, Effort Syndrome, neurasthenia). Journal of American MedicalAssociation 142: 878–888.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wig, N. N. 1983 DSM-III: A Perspective from the Third World. In International Perspectives on DSM-III. R. S. Spitzer, J. B. W. Williams, and A. E. Skodol, eds., Washington D.C.: American Psychiatric Press

    Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization 1992 The ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders: Clinical Descriptions and Diagnostic Guidelines. Madras: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yap, P. M. 1951 Mental Disorders Peculiar to Certain Cultures: A Survey of Comparative Psychiatry. Journal of Mental Science 97: 313–327.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1965a Koro — A Culture-Bound Depersonalization Syndrome. British Journal of Psychiatry 111: 43–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yap, P. M. 1965b Koro in a Briton. British Journal of Psychiatry 111: 774–775.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1969 The Culture-bound Reactive Syndromes. In Mental Health Research in Asia and the Pacific. W. Caudill and T. Y. Lin, eds., pp. 33–53. Honolulu: East-West Center Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • 1974 Comparative Psychiatry: A Theoretical Framework. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Psychiatry, 7, D. L. Khan Road, 7000 025, Calcutta, India

    Arabinda N. Chowdhury

Authors
  1. Arabinda N. Chowdhury
    View author publications

    Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Chowdhury, A.N. The definition and classification of Koro. Cult Med Psych 20, 41–65 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00118750

Download citation

  • Issue date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00118750

Keywords