An insider's view of the new diagnostic and statistical manual of North American psychiatry (DSM-5)

Abstract

The relevance/ visibility of psychiatric disorders within the realmof medicine has significantly increased in recent times, possiblydue to their high frequency and the negative impact they have oncost, disability and quality of life. The subjective nature of thesedisorders, their clinical complexity and the absence of reliablemarkers, keep us completely dependent on anamnesis and clinicalexamination. All of this, forces us, periodically, to review andrefine diagnostic systems, hoping to improve the recognition andeffective management of mental disorders. The scientific progressin basic neuroscience, observed during and following the "decadeof the brain", coupled with a lack of satisfaction with the existingsystem (DSM-IV) suggested it was the moment to embark in thistask, hence the process leading to DSM-5.