Posttraumatic stress disorder as a diagnostic entity – clinical perspectives

Abstract

Throughout history the consequences of psychological trauma and characteristic symptoms have involved clinical presentations that have had different names. Since the inclusion of the category of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in the third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) with the symptomatic triad of re-experiencing the traumatic event, avoidance behaviors, and hypervigilance, this entity has been a source of controversy. Indeed, some authors have denied its existence, even considering it a diagnostic invention. In this article we review, from the clinician’s perspective, historical aspects as well as the development of the nosological classifications and the contributions from the neurosciences that allow the consideration of the full validity of this diagnosis as a form of psychobiological reaction to psychological trauma.