Autoenucleation

The mythical Oedipus gouged his eyes out.

Autoenucleation, also known as oedipism, is the self-inflicted enucleation (removal) of the eye. It is considered a form of self-mutilation and is normally caused by psychosis, paranoid delusions or drugs.[1] Between 1968 and 2018 there were more than 50 documented cases of "complete or partial self-enucleation in English medical journals".[2] According to a 2012 study published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, self-enucleation was previously "considered to be the result of psycho-sexual conflicts" even if psychosis is a more likely cause.[3]

  1. ^ NP Jones (1990-09-01). "Self-enucleation and psychosis". The British Journal of Ophthalmology. 74 (9): 571–573. doi:10.1136/bjo.74.9.571. PMC 1042215. PMID 2393650.
  2. ^ Large, Matthew Michael; Nielssen, Olav B. (28 February 2012). "Self-enucleation: forget Freud and Oedipus, it's all about untreated psychosis". British Journal of Ophthamology. 96 (9): 1056–57. doi:10.1136/bjophthalmol-2012-301531. PMID 22373824 – via BMJ Journals.
  3. ^ Matthew Michael Large, Olav B Nielssen (24 July 2012). "Self-enucleation: forget Freud and Oedipus, it's all about untreated psychosis". British Journal of Ophthalmology. 96 (8): 1056–1057. doi:10.1136/bjophthalmol-2012-301531. PMID 22373824. S2CID 20826549. Archived from the original on 2018-03-16. Retrieved 2018-03-15.