Do features of Mozart’s letter-writing style indicate the presence of a neuropsychiatric disorder? Controversies about the Bäsle letters

In recent decades, several scientific publications have come to the conclusion that Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart might have had a Tourette syndrome. Other papers, however, have questioned this hypothetical diagnosis. The evidence for this diagnosis was mostly based on the so-called Bäsle letters, letters that Mozart wrote to his cousin when aged around 20 years. The letters have common stylistic characteristics such as frequent mention of erotic topics and, in particular, intensive use of scatological terms. However, these characteristics cannot be interpreted as clearly indicating a Tourette syndrome but may rather be related to psychosocial and cultural aspects of that time. There is little evidence for a Tourette syndrome from other sources, such as reports of behavioural abnormalities, and the evidence is not convincing.