Commentary: The Public Health Consequences of an Industry-Influenced Psychiatric Taxonomy: “Attenuated Psychotic Symptoms Syndrome” as a Case Example

Abstract

Determining the distribution of psychiatric disorders and developing sound preventive and intervention practices are pressing public health issues. Since at present mental disorders lack biological markers, psychiatric taxonomies must grapple with how best to address issues of validity and reliability. With the increasing congruence between the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) and the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) (American Psychiatric Association, 2010), it is imperative that decisions regarding the inclusion of new disorders be research-based and not unduly influenced by industry. The first draft of DSM-V, recently made public, has created a firestorm of controversy, for the DSM's nomenclature of disease or other pathology not only affects such disparate domains as jurisprudence and insurance claims but is also an instrument designed to facilitate research on psychopathology.

Keywords:

• antipsychotics
• attenuated psychotic symptoms syndrome
• atypicals
• diagnosis
• DSM-V
• pharmaceutical industry