Characteristics and Causes
Diogenes syndrome is known as a disorder common in elderly people that involve hoarding of rubbish and severe self-neglect. In addition, the syndrome is characterized by domestic squalor, syllogomania, social alienation, and refusal of help. It has been shown that the syndrome is caused as a reaction to stress that was experienced by the patient. The time span in which the syndrome develops is undefined, though it is most accurately distinguished as a reaction to stress that occurs late in life.
In most instances, patients were observed to have an abnormal possessiveness and patterns of compilation in a disordered manner. These symptoms suggest damages on the prefrontal areas of the brain, due to its relation to decision making. Although in contrast, there have been some cases where the hoarded objects were arranged in a methodical manner, which may suggest a cause other than brain damage.
Although most patients have been observed to come from homes with poor conditions, and many had been faced with poverty for a long period of time, these similarities are not considered as a definite cause to the syndrome. The severe neglect that they bring on themselves usually results in physical collapse or mental breakdown. Most individuals who suffer from the syndrome do not get identified until they face this stage of collapse, due to their predilection to refuse help from others.
The patients are generally highly intelligent, and the personality traits that can be seen frequently in patients diagnosed with Diogenes syndrome are aggressiveness, stubbornness, suspicion of others, unpredictable mood swings, emotional instability and deformed perception of reality. Secondary DS is related to mental disorders. The direct relation of the patients' personalities to the syndrome is unclear, though the similarities in character suggest potential avenues for investigation.
Read more about this topic: Diogenes Syndrome