Monestiev. Contribution to the study of suicide in general paralysis. — Medico-psychological annals. March- April, 1900

The author says, quoting Magnan, that in progressive paralysis there are two different diseases: 1. paralytic dementia, the main disease, which is a long-term, continuous disease, has a fatal tendency; it represents certain disorders, known persistent symptoms; 2. madness, which seems to be changeable, transient; most often it depends on congestion and represents the most opposite manifestations. But, despite this variety of manifestations, dementia and disorderly, transient nature of delirium give this madness a peculiar imprint. For example, it is difficult to confuse criminal acts committed by paralytics with those in which the culprit is the mentally ill, but not paralytics. The same applies to attempts at suicide, in which you will encounter a little persistence and childish character of ideas that induce them to these attempts.