Trauma Induced Catatonia: A Rare Pediatric Presentation
Location
LSUHSC-NO
Publication Date
April 2026
Start Date
9-4-2026 10:00 AM
End Date
9-4-2026 2:00 PM
Description
Introduction: Catatonia is a neuropsychiatric condition characterized by psychomotor disturbance, autonomic dysfunction and changes in speech and behavior (1). Catatonia in children and adolescents has a wide variability in presentation leading to underdiagnosis (2). We present here a case of a 16-year-old female who developed catatonia secondary to a traumatic event whose presentation was atypical and complicated by barriers in communication.
Case: A 16-year-old Spanish-speaking female with no past psychiatric or medical history presented after three days of not speaking, eating, drinking, or sleeping with abdominal pain, vomiting, dysuria, hallucinations, and a flat affect. She had been left at home with her siblings for two weeks and was found to be significantly functionally impaired when mom returned. At baseline, she did not have literacy appropriate for her age. Prior to presentation, she experienced sexual trauma resulting in an abortion. Vitals were stable. Imaging was negative. Labs were positive for Chlamydia and HHV-6. Urinalysis grew S. aureus. CSF was positive for West Nile and St. Louis Arbovirus lgG. Steroids and IV lorazepam were initiated while waiting for an autoimmune encephalitis panel results. She showed improvement in affect and behavior after starting Lorazepam, therefore steroids were discontinued. She was transferred to an inpatient psychiatric hospital for 105 days. Lorazepam was titrated to 21mg daily with klonopin nightly. Lorazepam was gradually tapered with the addition of Amantadine. On the day of discharge, lorazepam was discontinued.
Discussion: There are few reported cases of trauma induced catatonia in pediatric patients. This case represents a unique presentation of trauma induced catatonia in a patient without prior psychiatric diagnosis and emphasizes the importance of early recognition of pediatric catatonia and impacts of early benzodiazepine therapy. It also emphasizes the difficulty of assessment with language barriers between the patient and the healthcare team.
Recommended Citation
Feulner, Leah MD; Shankar, Nithyapriya MS4; Bookman, Drew MS3; and Crozat, Nicole MD, "Trauma Induced Catatonia: A Rare Pediatric Presentation" (2026). Dept. of Psychiatry Research Symposium. 14.
https://digitalscholar.lsuhsc.edu/psych_rd/2026/posters/14
Trauma Induced Catatonia: A Rare Pediatric Presentation
LSUHSC-NO
Introduction: Catatonia is a neuropsychiatric condition characterized by psychomotor disturbance, autonomic dysfunction and changes in speech and behavior (1). Catatonia in children and adolescents has a wide variability in presentation leading to underdiagnosis (2). We present here a case of a 16-year-old female who developed catatonia secondary to a traumatic event whose presentation was atypical and complicated by barriers in communication.
Case: A 16-year-old Spanish-speaking female with no past psychiatric or medical history presented after three days of not speaking, eating, drinking, or sleeping with abdominal pain, vomiting, dysuria, hallucinations, and a flat affect. She had been left at home with her siblings for two weeks and was found to be significantly functionally impaired when mom returned. At baseline, she did not have literacy appropriate for her age. Prior to presentation, she experienced sexual trauma resulting in an abortion. Vitals were stable. Imaging was negative. Labs were positive for Chlamydia and HHV-6. Urinalysis grew S. aureus. CSF was positive for West Nile and St. Louis Arbovirus lgG. Steroids and IV lorazepam were initiated while waiting for an autoimmune encephalitis panel results. She showed improvement in affect and behavior after starting Lorazepam, therefore steroids were discontinued. She was transferred to an inpatient psychiatric hospital for 105 days. Lorazepam was titrated to 21mg daily with klonopin nightly. Lorazepam was gradually tapered with the addition of Amantadine. On the day of discharge, lorazepam was discontinued.
Discussion: There are few reported cases of trauma induced catatonia in pediatric patients. This case represents a unique presentation of trauma induced catatonia in a patient without prior psychiatric diagnosis and emphasizes the importance of early recognition of pediatric catatonia and impacts of early benzodiazepine therapy. It also emphasizes the difficulty of assessment with language barriers between the patient and the healthcare team.