Schizophrenia - diagnosis
Diagnosis remains CLINICAL
- mental health professional must consider:
- personal history including relationships, occupational history, past psychiatric history, substance abuse;
- family history;
- mental status exam;
- medical work-up, if appropriate.
- Preferably, a patient should be observed over a period of months to years before a diagnosis is made.
DSM-IV criteria:
You must have at least 2 of several symptoms over a 1 month period (less if treated):
- delusions,
- hallucinations,
- disorganized speech,
- grossly disorganized behavior or catatonia, or
- negative symptoms.
Q: Can an experienced mental health worker distiyounguish between schizophrenia and other illnesses?
A: NO.
- studies indicate the ability to diagnosis schizophrenia from a single interview (without a past history and family history) is no better than chance.
Is there a blood test for schizophrenia?
- No. It remains a clinical diagnosis.