Part 1 of Medscape’s Rare and Uncommon Psychiatric Conditions series looked at uncommon psychiatric syndromes that, although seldom experienced in practice, need to be identifiable and treatable by clinicians. Similarly, Part 2 takes a look at syndromes that have actually been explained or tend to manifest in specific cultures or areas of the world.
In the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Illness (DSM-IV), [1] these conditions were termed “culture-bound syndromes”; the 5th edition of the DSM (DSM-5) [2] includes them under “Cultural Concepts of Distress.” This upgraded method is meant to more accurately characterize cultural impacts on the expression and experience of mental illness that can manifest in anyone, increasing importance to medical practice. Some formerly consisted of conditions have actually been removed in the new handbook, whereas others have actually been added or preserved as examples of culturally colored conditions. Although DSM-5 deemphasizes specific conditions in favor of a wider approach to cultural principles, both those examples included and not consisted of in the manual stay appropriate to practice, considered that they’re still reported in many cultures around the globe.
