Abstract
Background No study outside the UK has examined the diagnostic stability of psychotic disorders in a population- based sample.
Aims To determine diagnostic stability in a Dutch population -based psychosis incidence cohort, to examine the frequencies of diagnostic shifts to and from schizophrenic disorders and to report the revised relative risks of schizophrenic disorders for immigrants.
Method A 30 -month follow-up study assessed the cohort (n=181) by means of face-to-face diagnostic interviews.
Results Diagnostic stability of schizophrenic disorders was high (91%), but lower for other psychotic disorders. At follow-up, the initial diagnosis was adjusted to schizophrenic disorder more often than that the reverse occurred. Almost half (49%) of the patients who were not initially diagnosed as having a schizophrenic disorder received this diagnosis at follow up. The relative risks for most immigrant groups were stable.
Conclusions Schizophrenic disorders are under diagnosed, rather than overdiagnosed, at first presentation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 460-464 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | The British Journal of Psychiatry |
| Volume | 185 |
| Publication status | Published - Dec-2004 |
Keywords
- PSYCHIATRIC-DIAGNOSIS
- SCHIZOPHRENIA
- 1ST-EPISODE
- INSTRUMENT
- SYMPTOMS