1) Hypothermia can lead to irrational and psychotic behavior at low
core body temperatures.
2) There are various taxonomies for describing mental disorders.

I need a citation (or preferrably multiple citations) from a
respectable medical source that describes/defines cold-induced
psychosis or dementia.

I am NOT looking for simply a description of hypothermia's affects on
mental performance, but for a recognized category of disorder, from a
compendium of psychiatric or medical disorders that is well
recognized.

---

Clarification of Question by jsn-ga on 01 Nov 2002 11:36 PST

I appreciate your efforts so far, but you are correct, I need a
citation that specifically refers to psychosis as the result of
cold-stress (versus a more general category like environmental
factors).  If such a citation is not available in a medical compendum
of disorders, an alternative would be citations from medical studies
that document cold-induced psychosis or psychotic behavior.
thx jsn

Hello jsn,

The condition you are inquiring about is known as “delirium” according
to DSM-IV-TR criteria (citation included under Sources at the end of
my answer.) By definition, delirium is caused by a general medical
condition, such as hypothermia. The DSM-IV-TR does not refer to the
specific term “hypothermia,” but rather cites “temperature
dysregulation” as a medical condition which may induce delirium.

In DSM-IV-TR terms, the diagnosis would be 293.0 Delirium Due to
Hypothermia. If you're familiar with the multi-axial diagnoses of the
DSM-IV-TR, you'd put the delirium on Axis I and would note the
hypothermia on Axis III, which is reserved for medical conditions.

According to eMedicine.com (refer to link below), delirium can be a
symptom of moderate hypothermia when the body reaches a core
temperature of  28-32°C or 82.4-89.6°F.

Hypothermia
http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic1144.htm

The following link outlines DSM-IV criteria for making the diagnosis
of delirium. Also listed are specific examples of cognitive and
perceptual disturbances that often accompany delirium.

An Overview of Delirium
http://www.jr2.ox.ac.uk/geratol/dcdelir2.htm

Another helpful article can be found at the link below. It addresses
paranoia, hallucinations, and delusions in the context of delirium.
You may be interested in the additional references at the end of the
article.

Delirium
http://www.postgradmed.com/issues/1996/07_96/casey2.htm

While not specific to the issue of hypothermia-induced delirium, the
following article has an interesting table of symptoms distinguishing
between delirium and psychosis. I include this because not all
clinicians consider delirium to be a psychotic disorder, even though
the symptoms of delirium can cause an individual to appear psychotic.
The table should be helpful in showing you how typical presentations
of delirium and psychosis differ.

Delirium and Dementia
(Scroll down to the pink table on the right side with the heading, “Is
It Delirium or Psychosis?)
http://www.merck.com/pubs/mmanual_home/sec6/76.htm

And here are a few delirium-specific links which may interest you. 

II. Disease Definition, Epidemiology, and Natural History
A. Definition and Clinical Features
http://www.psych.org/clin_res/pg_delirium_2.cfm

Delirium 
http://www.avera.org/adam/ency/article/000740.htm


Sources: 

DSM-IV-TR
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition,
Text Revision. Washington, DC, American Psychiatric Association, 2000.

Search Terms Used:
Delirium
Delirium + Hypothermia

Prior to rating this answer, please feel free to ask for clarification
if any portion of my answer was unclear or not helpful.

Best wishes,
fsw

jsn...

The psychiatric compendium would be the DSM-IV, or the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 
- Fourth Edition. The diagnosis there would be rather
generalized, as in 293.81 - Psychotic Disorder Due to
...[Indicate the General Medical Condition, e.g. 
hypothermia]..., with Delusions; or 293.82 - Psychotic
Disorder Due to...[Indicate the General Medical Condition],
With Hallucinations; or 298.9 - Psychotic Disorder NOS
(not otherwise specified). See this page, from the 
Psychology Net site:
http://www.psychologynet.org/dsmaxis.html
and press the "DSM Codes" button.

I suspect this will not satisfy your interest, so I'm
posting it as a comment. You may find a more specific
listing for what you seek in a compendium of medical
conditions. I am less familiar with these, however
the ICD-9, or International Classification of Diseases,
version 9, also has a generalized listing for 
non-organic (not originating in the brain) psychoses,
induced by emotional stress or environmental factors
(such as cold). It is also 298.9, for psychosis,
unspecified. See this page, from the e-MDs site:
http://www.e-mds.com/icd9/298/index.html


Searches done, via Google:

DSM-IV
://www.google.com/search?num=50&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=DSM-IV&btnG=Google+Search

ICD-9 codes
://www.google.com/search?num=50&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=ICD-9+codes


If this does, in fact, satisfy your query, indicate this
in a clarification or comment, and I'll post it as an
answer.

sublime1-ga