Abstract

Hyperreligiosity is a psychiatric disturbance in which a person experiences intense religious beliefs or experiences that interfere with normal functioning. Hyperreligiosity generally includes abnormal beliefs and a focus on religious content, which interferes with work and social functioning. Hyperreligiosity may occur in a variety of disorders including epilepsy, psychotic disorders and frontotemporal lobar degeneration. Hyperreligiosity is a symptom of Geschwind syndrome, which is associated with temporal lobe epilepsy.

Signs and symptoms

Hyperreligiosity is characterized by an increased tendency to report spiritual, religious or mystical experiences, religious delusions, rigid legalistic thoughts, and extravagant expression of religiosity. Hyperreligiosity may also include religious hallucinations.

Pathophysiology and cause

Hyperreligiosity may be associated with epilepsy — in particular temporal lobe epilepsy involving complex partial seizures — mania, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, Anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis, hallucinogen related psychsis and psychotic disorder. In persons with epilepsy episodic hyperreligosity may occur ictally or postictally, but is usually a chronic personality feature that occurs interictally. Hyperrelgiosity was associated in one small study with decreased right hippocampal volume. The medial prefrontal cortex may play a role in controlling religiousness, and dysfunction may lead to hyperreligiosity. Increased activity in the left temporal regions of hyperreligiosity in psychotic disorders. Pharmacological evidence points towards dysfunction in the ventral dopaminergic pathway.