Koro: Clinical and Historical Developments of the Culturally Defined Genital Retraction Disorder

This book provides a definitive account of koro, a topic of long-standing interest in the field of cultural psychiatry in which the patient displays a fear of the genitals shrinking and retracting. Written by Professor A.N. Chowdhury, a leading expert in the field, it provides a comprehensive overview of the cultural, historical and clinical significance of the condition that includes both cutting-edge critique and an analysis of research and accounts from the previous 120 years published literature.
The book begins by outlining the definition, etymology of the term, and clinical features of koro as a culture-bound syndrome, and contextualizes the concept with reference to its historical origins and local experience in Southeast Asia, and its subsequent widespread occurrence in South Asia. It also critically examines the concept of culture-bound disorder and the development of the terminology, such as cultural concepts of distress, which is the term that is currently used in the DSM-5. Subsequent chapters elaborate the cultural context of koro in Chinese and South Asian cultures, including cultural symbolic analysis of associations with animals (fox and turtle) and phallic imagery based on troubling self-perceived aspects of body image that is central to the concept. The second section of the book offers a comprehensive, global literature review, before addressing the current status and relevance of koro, clinically relevant questions of risk assessment and forensic issues, and research methodology.
This landmark work will provide a unique resource for clinicians and researchers working in cultural psychiatry, cultural psychology, anthropology, medical sociology, social work and psychosexual medicine.

​Arabinda Narayan Chowdhury, MBBS, MD., Ph.D., FAMS, FRCPsych., Ph.D., D.Sc., Psychoanalyst, is a Consultant in Adult Psychiatry and is currently working at Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, UK. Before joining the NHS, he worked as Professor and Head of the Institute of Psychiatry, Kolkata, India. Professor Chowdhury’s research interests include Cultural and Social Psychiatry, with a particular focus on Eco-Psychiatry but with a special focus on koro, on which he has contributed over 50 articles and chapters.
He was awarded twice the highest academic award (Marfatia Award) for his research by the Indian Psychiatric Society. He devoted a large part of his long academic career to mental health service development, and for this extraordinary service, he was awarded the prestigious Dr. B.C.Roy National Award by the Medical Council of India and Award by the World Federation of Mental Health. He is an executive member of the Transcultural Psychiatry group of Royal College of Psychiatrists, UK.