title: Focus on psychosis.
abstract: The concept of psychosis has been shaped by traditions in the concepts of mental disorders during the last 170 years. The term "psychosis" still lacks a unified definition, but denotes a clinical construct composed of several symptoms. Delusions, hallucinations, and thought disorders are the core clinical features. The search for a common denominator of psychotic symptoms points toward combinations of neuropsychological mechanisms resulting in reality distortion. To advance the elucidation of the causes and the pathophysiology of the symptoms of psychosis, a deconstruction of the term into its component symptoms is therefore warranted. Current research is dealing with the delineation from "normality", the genetic underpinnings, and the causes and pathophysiology of the symptoms of psychosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Gaebel
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Jürgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zielasek
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D049672:History, 19th Century; D006801:Humans; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000145:classification* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000266:history
keywords: classification of mental disorders; history of psychosis; psychosis; schizophrenia