On a ward round, a psychiatry student notices that a patient with schizophrenia touches his own nose every time the consultant touches hers, seemingly without registering that he is doing it. He does not respond when asked directly whether he noticed. Before revealing the answer: what is this finding, and what other catatonic signs would be worth specifically checking for given this observation?
This is echopraxia. Given its presence, it would be worth specifically checking for other catatonic signs that commonly occur alongside it: echolalia (automatic repetition of speech), automatic obedience (complying with instructions without resistance), and waxy flexibility or catalepsy (a limb staying where it is passively placed) — echopraxia rarely occurs in complete isolation from the wider catatonic picture.
References
- Casey, P. & Kelly, B. (2019). Fish's Clinical Psychopathology, 4th ed. Ch. 8, 'Motor Disorders'.