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The relationship between symptoms and diagnoses of minor psychiatric disorder in general practice

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

D. A. Grayson*
Affiliation:
NH&MRC Social Psychiatry Research Unit, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
K. Bridges
Affiliation:
NH&MRC Social Psychiatry Research Unit, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
P. Duncan-Jones
Affiliation:
NH&MRC Social Psychiatry Research Unit, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
D. P. Goldberg
Affiliation:
NH&MRC Social Psychiatry Research Unit, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
*
1Address for correspondence: Dr D. A. Grayson, NH&MRC Social Psychiatry Research Unit, Australian National University, GPO Box 4, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia.

Synopsis

In an earlier paper (Goldberg et al. 1987) 36 common symptoms of minor psychiatric disorder in general practice were analysed using the technique of latent trait analysis. From this analysis two dimensions of illness emerged, corresponding to anxiety and depression. In the present paper, this symptom-based representation of minor psychiatric illness is used as a framework for comparing four diagnostic systems: General Practitioner (GP) diagnoses, the ID-CATEGO diagnostic system, the DSM-III system and the Bedford College diagnostic system. This analysis clarifies the reasons for disagreement among systems of diagnostic criteria and examines the practical effects of alternative diagnostic algorithms.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1987

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