Cannabis-Induced Koro-Like Syndrome
Urologia Internationalis 2006 DOI: 10.1159/000091634 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Case study Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Citations | 17 |
| Key findings | The authors report the first case of a cannabis-induced koro-like syndrome in Greece, describing the syndrome as a transient acute anxiety state with a triad of fear of penile shrinkage, retraction into the abdomen, and apprehension of impotence or death. They note that Western non-psychiatric cases have mostly been tied to neurological disorders or cannabis or amphetamine intoxication. |
Abstract
The genital-shrinking syndrome is a transient state of acute anxiety characterized by the triad of a deep-seated fear of penile shrinkage, its disappearance into the abdomen, and apprehension regarding inevitable impotence or even death. It is also known by the Malayo-Indonesian term 'koro'. In the West, koro syndrome has been reported only in relation with various somatic, psychiatric and drug-induced disorders. The vast majority of non-psychiatric cases was related to neurological disorders or intoxication with cannabis or amphetamine. This is the first case of cannabis-induced koro-like syndrome ever reported in Greece.
Comparable studies
Other case reports and case series on cannabis, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychotic Reactions Following Cannabis Use in East Indians Patients at an Indian drug addiction clinic who developed acute cannabis-related psychosis | 1974 | Descriptive report (case series of clinical observations) | n = 200 |
| Psychiatric effects of cannabis use Swedish cases of cannabis psychosis | 1985 | Case series | n = 70 |
| Forty-Six Cases of Psychosis in Cannabis Abusers Gunila Bernhardson Habitual cannabis users treated for psychosis at Swedish psychiatric clinics and mental... | 1972 | Case series (retrospective survey of psychiatric records) | n = 46 |
| Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder after psilocybin consumption: a case study 18-year-old man with HPPD after mixed psilocybin and cannabis intoxication | 2005 | Case study | n = 1 |
| Cannabis‐induced Koro in Americans American men aged 22-26 with years of cannabis experience who reported negative... | 2001 | Case series | n = 3 |