Search results for "nosology"

Factitious disorders and pathological self-harm in a hospital population: an interdisciplinary challenge.

2002

Factitious disorder, Munchausen's Syndrome, and deliberate self-harm have recently been conceptualized as different facets of self-destructive behavior. A descriptive typological classification has been presented by Willenberg et al., but has not yet been tested with a clinical sample. The instrument distinguishes between direct self-harm (e.g., self-inflicted wounds), self-induced disease (e.g., factitious fever), and indirect self-harm delegated to medical staff (e.g., repeated operations occasioned by feigned symptoms). All patients referred to the psychosomatic-psychotherapeutic liaison-consultation service or to the outpatients' department within 14 months (n = 995) and all patients di…

Identification of minor affective disorders and implications for psychopharmacotherapy.

1991

Five hundred general practice patients with functional complaints were studied with the Polydiagnostic Interview (PODI) to see whether DSM-IIIR criteria were able to specify affective disorders satisfactorily. Almost one third of the patients received the diagnosis of depression not otherwise specified (NOS). When Research Diagnostic Criteria were applied to these patients more than 70% received specific diagnoses. A modification of DSM-IIIR algorithms enabled us to further specify diagnoses in subjects with depression NOS. On the 17-item Hamilton Depression Scale many of these patients reached scores of 13 or more which is severe enough to justify a therapy trial with antidepressants.

Hypochondriasis and somatization: two distinct aspects of somatoform disorders?

2000

We investigated boundaries and overlap between somatization and hypochondriasis on different levels of psychopathology: (1) comorbidity between hypochondriasis and somatization on the level of diagnoses in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994): (2) comorbidity with other mental disorders; (3) differences in clinical characteristics: and (4) overlap on the level of psychometric measures. The sample consisted of 120 psycho somatic inpatients. Somatoform, hypochondriacal, and depressive symptomatology, cognitions about body and health, and further aspects of general symptomatology were investigated. Diagnoses …

Neuropathic pain. Redefinition and a grading system for clinical and research purposes.

2008

Pain usually results from activation of nociceptive afferents by actually or potentially tissue-damaging stimuli. Pain may also arise by activity generated within the nervous system without adequate stimulation of its peripheral sensory endings. For this type of pain, the International Association for the Study of Pain introduced the term neuropathic pain, defined as "pain initiated or caused by a primary lesion or dysfunction in the nervous system." While this definition has been useful in distinguishing some characteristics of neuropathic and nociceptive types of pain, it lacks defined boundaries. Since the sensitivity of the nociceptive system is modulated by its adequate activation (e.g…

Reply to "More evidence that genetic profiling will delineate the nosology and biologic potential of fibrohistiocytic tumors in the dermatofibrosarco…

2013

Neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinoses: The current status

1992

In view of the epidemiological connotation of childhood neuronal ceroid-lipofuscinosis (NCL) as one of the most frequent progressive lysosomal diseases and neurodegenerative disorders in children, the recognition of the individual clinical forms of childhood NCL is still based on invasive diagnostic electronmicroscopy which, currently, may be applied also for prenatal diagnosis. Like other inherited disorders, the NCL group has finally also benefited from the genetic breakthroughs of localization of the genes for infantile NCL and juvenile NCL on chromosomes 1 and 16, respectively. This review concerns recent advances in morphological studies, broadening of the clinical spectrum of childhoo…

Don't change a winning horse

2005

IntroductionThere is surprising excitement about the adequacy andfuture of the somatoform disorders (SFDs) as a circum-scribed diagnostic group [1–4]. Some authors wish to takethe forthcoming fifth revision of the Diagnostic andStatistical Manual (DSM) as a welcome occasion to removean unloved diagnostic term. However, eliminating the SFDswould devaluate the progress of research and clinicalpractice made during the past 25 years. It would lead toinsecurity and confusion in an interdisciplinary field whereclear terminology and common understanding is of highvalue. This contribution attempts to summarize some of themajor reasons why DSM-V should continue with the SFDs.Some suggestions will be…

818 – The neuroscience of internet and computer game addiction - what do we know about what is going on inside our patients brains?

2013

Internet and Computer Game Addiction will in the future be included in the diagnostic manuals for mental disorders (Internet Use Disorder, www.dsm5.org ). During the past decades research in the epidemiology, risk factors and the clinical picture of IUD has emerged and convincingly contributed to the development of sound diagnostic criteria. However, there are two major areas where evidence of high quality is sparse. These are on the one hand the effectiveness and efficacy of tailored therapeutic interventions and on the other hand the neuroscientific underpinnings of Internet and Computer Game Addiction. The latter is strongly represented in the Asian Countries, where prevalence rates for …

Why DSM-III was right to introduce the concept of somatoform disorders.

2005

From the Psychological Institute, University of Mainz; and the Psychological Institute, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany. Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Hiller, Psychological Institute, University of Mainz, Staudingerweg 9, D-55099 Mainz, Germany; hiller@mail.uni-mainz.de (e-mail). Copyright 2005 The Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine. An interesting debate about the adequacy of the somatoform disorders as a diagnostic and clinical concept has begun. The debate is stimulated by the announcement of APA’s preparation of DSM-V, which is likely to follow DSM-IV as the world’s most influential classification system for defining the terminology and diagnostic definitions…

Eating disorders: Considerations on nosology, etiology and treatment in the XXI century

2011

Amazing advances have been made in medical sciences since the first international conference on eating disorders (ED) was held in the 1970s, and there have been remarkable changes in the field of ED itself. Back then, virtually all that was talked about was anorexia nervosa; clinicians and researchers were mainly concerned about the possible hypothalamic and endocrine factors that seemed to be involved and there had been no epidemiological studies or controlled trials with psychiatric drugs or psychotherapy. Although the picture today is quite different, there are still significant gaps which even affect the classification of these disorders, as well as their neurobiological bases and both …