Permeable walls, floors, ceilings and doors. Partition delusions in late paraphrenia

A partition delusion is the belief that people, objects or radiation can pass through what would normally constitute a barrier to such passage. These delusions have been reported to be common in late paraphrenia and late‐onset schizophrenia. Such partition delusions were found in 68% of 50 patients with late paraphrenia, but only in 13% of patients with schizophrenia who had grown old and in 20% of young schizophrenics. Partition delusions, often in association with persecutory beliefs, are common in late paraphrenia and we discuss some possible reasons for this.