[Inpatient treatment of a child with elective mutism--a case report].

The paper presents the case of a 10-year-old, electively mute boy, who had stopped talking with all persons outside his immediate family about four years ago. Therapeutic interventions had so far brought no change in his speech behavior. Within a short time (2 months) of residential treatment in a child care unit, his mutistic disorder and social behavior could be normalized and the child even managed to speak in this former school class where nobody had ever heard his voice. The multitude of possible reasons for the mutistic behavior and reinforcing environmental facts are reviewed, the symptom's meaning for the family system considered. The plan of treatment (mostly a combination of behavioral and systemic family therapy) is presented.