title: [Critical evaluation of current diagnostic classification systems in psychiatry: the case of DSM-5].
abstract: Since its first edition, the Diagnostic and Statistical manual of Mental disorders (DSM) has had a great impact on the scientific community and the public opinion as well. In 2013, the American Psychiatric Association released the fifth edition of the manual and - as for the previous versions - several criticisms raised. In particular, the persistence of the categorical approach to mental disorders represents one of the main debated topics, as well as the introduction of new diagnostic syndromes, which are not based on an adequate evidences. Moreover, the threshold of diagnostic criteria for many mental disorders has been lowered, with the consequence that the boundaries between "normality" and "pathology" is not so clear. In this paper, we will: 1) report the historical development of the DSM from the publication of its first edition; 2) describe the main changes introduced in the DSM-5; 3) discuss critical elements in the DSM-5. The current debate regarding the validity of diagnostic manuals and its criteria is threatening the psychiatric discipline, but a possible solution should be represented by the integration of diagnostic criteria with the in-depth description of patient's psychopathological experiences.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Università di Napoli SUN.
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Luciano
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Università di Napoli SUN.
authors.forename: Gaia
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sampogna
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Università di Napoli SUN.
authors.forename: Valeria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Del Vecchio
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Università di Napoli SUN.
authors.forename: Corrado
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: De Rosa
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Neuroscienze Rita Levi Montalcini, Università di Torino; Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria San Luigi Gonzaga di Orbassano, Torino.
authors.forename: Umberto
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Albert
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Milano Bicocca.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Carrà
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Fisiopatologia Medico-Chirurgica e dei Trapianti, Università di Milano, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Milano; Bipolar Disorders Clinic, Dept. of Psychiatry, Stanford University, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Bernardo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dell'Osso
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Medicina dei Sistemi, Università di Roma Tor Vergata; Unità di Psichiatria e Psicologia Clinica, Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Fondazione Policlinico Tor Vergata, Roma.
authors.forename: Giorgio Di
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Lorenzo
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Medicina Diagnostica, Clinica e di Sanità Pubblica, Università di Modena & Reggio Emilia.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ferrari
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Imaging e Scienze Cliniche, Università G. d'Annunzio, Chieti-Pescara.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Martinotti
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Scienze Biomediche e Chirurgico Specialistiche, Università di Ferrara.
authors.forename: Maria Giulia
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Nanni
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Sanità Pubblica, Medicina Clinica e Molecolare, Unità di Psichiatria, Università di Cagliari.
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pinna
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Salute Mentale e Organi di senso - NESMOS, Sapienza Università di Roma; Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Azienda Ospedaliera Sant'Andrea.
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pompili
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Università di Napoli SUN.
authors.forename: Umberto
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Volpe
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Università di Napoli SUN.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Catapano
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Università di Napoli SUN.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fiorillo
mesh_terms: D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011570:Psychiatry / Q000592:standards; D012955:Societies, Medical; D014481:United States