Based on sophisticated clinical descriptions and characteristic symptom patters occurring during the long-term course of psychiatric diseases, Leonhards classification requires that all the clinical features fit for a diagnosis to be made. Always using his own life-long case studies, Leonhard divided the endogenous psychoses into five main nosological groups: on the one hand, the prognostically favourable unipolar affective psychoses, bipolar affective psychoses and cycloid psychoses, and, on the other hand, the prognostically unfavourable unsystematic and systematic schizophrenia. In the meantime, the reliability and validity of this classification have been confirmed by scientific studies and early results provide guidelines for the different origins and varied therapeutic approaches for the specific disease profiles.
Since the 1990 publication of Goodwin and Jamison's classic text on mania and bipolar and unipolar depression, Manic-Depressive Illness, there have been a number of significant advances in the research, diagnosis, and treatment of mania and bipolar disorder. Developed and written by experts at the forefront of these advances, Mania: Clinical and Research Perspectives provides a comprehensive overview of all recent developments on all aspects of mania. Mania is divided into three sections: diagnostic considerations, biological aspects, and treatment. "Diagnostic Considerations" includes coverage of the diagnostic revisions in DSM-IV, special comorbidity issues in children and substance abuse, the differentiation of mood swing from bipolar disorder, and generational change and genetic linkage. "Biological Aspects" reviews the current state of knowledge in biochemistry and biological techniques such as gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and brain imaging. "Treatment" thoroughly surveys all major treatment regimens for mania, including new drug therapies such as carbamazepine, valproate, clozapine, risperidone, verapamil, and nimodipine. This section also details new findings on the use of lithium and the risks for pregnant women and advances in psychotherapy. The book concludes with a summary that provides a historical perspective and directions for further research. With the comprehensive coverage provided in Mania: Clinical and Research Perspectives, readers will be able to improve patient care through advanced diagnosis and treatment.
Thoroughly updated for its Second Edition, this practical guide will aid residents and clinicians in diagnosing and treating the full spectrum of mood disorders. Using the conversational style and clinical vignettes found in all Practical Guides in Psychiatry titles, Dr. Ghaemi explains how to accurately diagnose unipolar depression and bipolar disorder and offers specific, detailed, evidence-based recommendations on pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy. Chapters review the pharmacology of all antidepressants, mood stabilizers, and antipsychotics in current use and point out these drugs' advantages and drawbacks in specific clinical situations. Other chapters address clinical problems such as depression, mania, and ADHD in children and the conundrum of schizoaffective disorder. The Practical Guides in Psychiatry series provides quick, concise information for professionals on the front lines of mental health care. Written in an easy-to-read, conversational style, these invaluable resources take you through each step of the psychiatric care process, delivering fast facts and helpful strategies that help you provide effective and compassionate care to your patients.
2013 sees the centenary of Jaspers' foundation of psychopathology as a science in its own right. In 1913 Karl Jaspers published his psychiatric opus magnum - the Allgemeine Psychopathologie (General Psychopathology). Jaspers was working at a time much like our own - with rapid expansion in the neurosciences, and responding to the philosophical challenges that this raised. The idea inspiring his book was very simple: to bring order into the chaos of abnormal psychic phenomena by rigorous description, definition and classification, and to empower psychiatry with a valid and reliable method to assess and make sense of abnormal human subjectivity. After almost one century, many of the concepts challenged by Jaspers are still at issue, and Jaspers' investigation is even now the ground for analyses and discussions. With a new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) imminent, many of the issues concerning methodology and diagnosis are still the subject of much discussion and debate. This volume brings together leading psychiatrists and philosophers to discuss and evaluate the impact of this volume, its relevance today, and the legacy it left. "Jaspers' General Psychopathology is not an easy text to read. Especially nowadays, in the Internet era, it may appear in several parts obscure, convoluted, or repetitive. This is why the present volume has the potential to be not only attractive to scholars, but also extremely useful for young psychiatrists and busy clinicians. It may represent for them a 'guide' to the reading of that ponderous text, helping them to extract the key messages that are likely to resonate with, and at the same time enrich, their clinical practice and theoretical reflection." - From the Introduction by Mario Maj
This book examines sex and gender differences in the causes and expression of medical conditions, including mental health disorders. Sex differences are variations attributable to individual reproductive organs and the XX or XY chromosomal complement. Gender differences are variations that result from biological sex as well as individual self-representation which include psychological, behavioural, and social consequences of an individual’s perceived gender. Gender is still a neglected field in psychopathology, and gender differences is often incorrectly used as a synonym of sex differences. A reconsideration of the definition of gender, as the term that subsumes masculinity and femininity, could shed some light on this misperception and could have an effect in the study of health and disease. This second edition of Psychopathology clarifies the anthropological, cultural and social aspects of gender and their impact on mental health disorders. It focuses on gender perspective as a paradigm not only in psychopathology but also in mental health disorders. As such it promotes open mindedness in the definition and perception of symptoms, as well as assumptions about those symptoms, and raises awareness of mental health.
The revolution in psychiatry that began in earnest in the 1960s led to dramatic advances in the understanding and treatment of manic-depressive illness. Hailed as the most outstanding book in the biomedical sciences when it was originally published in 1990, Manic-Depressive Illness was the first to survey this massive body of evidence comprehensively and to assess its meaning for both clinician and scientist. It also vividly portrayed the experience of manic-depressive illness from the perspective of patients, their doctors, and researchers. Encompassing an understanding about the illness as Kraeplin conceived of it- about its cyclical course and about the essential unity of its bipolar and recurrent unipolar forms- the book has become the definitive work on the topic, revered by both specialists and nonspecialists alike. Now, in this magnificent second edition, Drs. Frederick Goodwin and Kay Redfield Jamison bring their unique contribution to mental health science into the 21st century. In collaboration with a team of other leading scientists, a collaboration designed to preserve the unified voice of the two authors, they exhaustively review the biological and genetic literature that has dominated the field in recent years and incorporate cutting-edge research conducted since publication of the first edition. They also update their surveys of psychological and epidemiological evidence, as well as that pertaining to diagnostic issues, course, and outcome, and they offer practical guidelines for differential diagnosis and clinical management. The medical treatment of manic and depressive episodes is described, strategies for preventing future episodes are given in detail, and psychotherapeutic issues common in this illness are considered. Special emphasis is given to fostering compliance with medication regimens and treating patients who abuse drugs and alcohol or who pose a risk of suicide. This book, unique in the way that it retains the distinct perspective of its authors while assuring the maximum in-depth coverage of a vastly expanded base of scientific knowledge, will be a valuable and necessary addition to the libraries of psychiatrists and other physicians, psychologists, clinical social workers, neuroscientists, pharmacologists, and the patients and families who live with manic-depressive illness.
Mania is a medical condition characterised by severely elevated mood. Mania is most usually associated with bipolar disorder, where episodes of mania may cyclically alternate with episodes of depression. (Note: not all mania can be classified as bipolar disorder, as mania may result from other diseases or causes. However, bipolar disorder is the "classic" manic disease). Hypomania is a less severe variant of mania, where there is less loss of control. Mania can be experienced at the same time as depression, in a mixed state. Dysphoric mania is primarily manic and a depressive mixed state is primarily depressed. This has caused speculation amongst doctors that mania and depression are two independent axes in a bipolar spectrum, rather than opposites. This book presents the latest research in this field.
