title: Usefulness of DSM-III axis III in psychiatric inpatients: an actuarial comparison with the DSM-II period.
abstract: This study is a retrospective evaluation of the usefulness of DSM-III axis III (physical disorders) and its ability to enhance clinical case description in general psychiatric patients. The subjects of this study consisted of two samples of 75 inpatients; each was randomly selected and age-matched to represent DSM-II (1975-1979) and DSM-III (1981-1985) periods, respectively. The results indicated a substantial and statistically significant difference in the frequency of physical disorders recorded at intake before (9.3%) and after (46.7%) the implementation of DSM-III. DSM-III axis III may significantly enhance the recording of physical disorders in psychiatric inpatients.
authors.affiliation: Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, PA 15213.
authors.forename: I M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Salloum
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Mezzich
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Saavedra
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kirisci
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006753:Hospital Records; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D010343:Patient Admission; D010808:Physical Examination; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D009626:Terminology as Topic