Psychiatry's civil war - open conflict has broken out among the upper echelons of US psychiatry.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20427381.300-psychiatrys-civi...
When doctors disagree with each other, they usually couch their criticisms in careful, measured language. In the past few months, however, open conflict has broken out among the upper echelons of US psychiatry. The focus of discord is a volume called the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM, which psychiatrists turn to when diagnosing the distressed individuals who turn up at their offices seeking help. Regularly referred to as the profession's bible, the DSM is in the midst of a major rewrite, and feelings are running high.
Two eminent retired psychiatrists are warning that the revision process is fatally flawed. They say the new manual, to be known as DSM-V, will extend definitions of mental illnesses so broadly that tens of millions of people will be given unnecessary and risky drugs. Leaders of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), which publishes the manual, have shot back, accusing the pair of being motivated by their own financial interests - a charge they deny. The row is set to come to a head next month when the proposed changes will be published online. For a profession that exists to soothe human troubles, it's incendiary stuff.
First published in 1952, the DSM has its origins in a book used by the US military to determine if recruits were mentally fit for combat. The difficulty of separating mental disorders from normal variation in behaviour made it controversial from the start. Over the years, the book's influence has grown, and today it is used by doctors across the globe.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20427381.300-psychiatrys-civi...
When doctors disagree with each other, they usually couch their criticisms in careful, measured language. In the past few months, however, open conflict has broken out among the upper echelons of US psychiatry. The focus of discord is a volume called the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM, which psychiatrists turn to when diagnosing the distressed individuals who turn up at their offices seeking help. Regularly referred to as the profession's bible, the DSM is in the midst of a major rewrite, and feelings are running high.
Two eminent retired psychiatrists are warning that the revision process is fatally flawed. They say the new manual, to be known as DSM-V, will extend definitions of mental illnesses so broadly that tens of millions of people will be given unnecessary and risky drugs. Leaders of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), which publishes the manual, have shot back, accusing the pair of being motivated by their own financial interests - a charge they deny. The row is set to come to a head next month when the proposed changes will be published online. For a profession that exists to soothe human troubles, it's incendiary stuff.
First published in 1952, the DSM has its origins in a book used by the US military to determine if recruits were mentally fit for combat. The difficulty of separating mental disorders from normal variation in behaviour made it controversial from the start. Over the years, the book's influence has grown, and today it is used by doctors across the globe.
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20427381.300-psychiatrys-civi...
Comment
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Comment by Jeff on December 18, 2009 at 10:18pm
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Comment by Marklar on December 16, 2009 at 5:53am
A vague but useful pseudoscience at it's best, an utter nightmare at it's worst.
That about says it. Succinct and to the point.
I'm very typically far more wordy. Psychiatry is based on opinion while medicine is based on science. There are no medical diagnostic tests for ANY psychiatric diseases and this includes Schizophrenia and other such so-called diseases. There are no blood tests, no brain imaging devices, no neurological tests to prove any of these diseases exist. None.
ALL of Psychiatry is based on opinion.
If I were a Psychiatrist and my opinion were that global warming was caused by man, would I be right?
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Comment by Ron Cesek on December 18, 2009 at 3:21pm
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" . . free and unnecessary drugs."
Like Fluoride Water for Baby Formula ?
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Comment by Anti Oligarch on December 18, 2009 at 2:24am
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Let's hope this escalates to a full out war between them.
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Comment by Marklar on December 16, 2009 at 5:53am
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A vague but useful pseudoscience at it's best, an utter nightmare at it's worst.
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