An Overview on Schizophrenia Diagnosis and Management Approach

Introduction: One of the important psychiatric conditions is schizophrenia, since patients with it often suffer from acute psychosis. Therefore, they could harm themselves or inadvertently other family members or co-workers. Objective: Our aim was to discuss the approach to schizophrenia in the psychiatric clinic, and how it is diagnosed and managed. Methods: PubMed database was used for articles selection, papers from where were obtained and reviewed. Review: The development of schizophrenia is not well understood, but links to family history and data from twin studies have proven useful in understanding some of the pathophysiological mechanisms of disease. Schizophrenia is a combination of positive and negative symptoms, with most patients presenting with an acute psychotic episode. Conclusion: Schizophrenia is best managed in a multidisciplinary approach, where a combination of medication prescription, psychological therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy is used.