Biomaterial Database

The relationship between social phobia and avoidant personality disorder: workshop report 3. 1996

A A Dahl

Research Unit, Gaustad Hospital, University of Oslo, Norway.

Social phobia and avoidant personality disorder were new diagnoses in the third version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) and were considerably changed in the revised third version (DSM-III-R). A high rate of comorbidity between these disorders was observed, which can be explained by the use of the same diagnostic criteria for both conditions. While there has been considerable research activity on social phobia, little has been done on avoidant personality disorder. The relationship between these disorders, therefore, cannot be clearly stated at the moment. All of the empirical evidence so far supports a spectrum concept of social phobia with avoidant personality disorder rather than seeing the latter as a valid mental disorder.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D010698	Phobic Disorders	Anxiety disorders in which the essential feature is persistent and irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation that the individual feels compelled to avoid. The individual recognizes the fear as excessive or unreasonable.	Claustrophobia,Neuroses, Phobic,Phobia, School,Phobias,Phobic Neuroses,Scolionophobia,Disorder, Phobic,Phobia,Phobic Disorder,School Phobia
D003937	Diagnosis, Differential	Determination of which one of two or more diseases or conditions a patient is suffering from by systematically comparing and contrasting results of diagnostic measures.	Diagnoses, Differential,Differential Diagnoses,Differential Diagnosis
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D001008	Anxiety Disorders	Persistent and disabling ANXIETY.	Anxiety Neuroses,Anxiety States, Neurotic,Neuroses, Anxiety,Anxiety Disorder,Anxiety State, Neurotic,Disorder, Anxiety,Disorders, Anxiety,Neurotic Anxiety State,Neurotic Anxiety States,State, Neurotic Anxiety,States, Neurotic Anxiety
D015897	Comorbidity	The presence of co-existing or additional diseases with reference to an initial diagnosis or with reference to the index condition that is the subject of study. Comorbidity may affect the ability of affected individuals to function and also their survival; it may be used as a prognostic indicator for length of hospital stay, cost factors, and outcome or survival.