Schizoaffective Disorder
The specific DSM-5 criteria for schizoaffective disorder are as follows:
A. An uninterrupted duration of illness during which there is a major mood episode (manic or depressive) in addition to criterion A for schizophrenia; the major depressive episode must include depressed mood.
Criterion A for schizophrenia is as follows:
Two or more of the following presentations, each present for a significant amount of time during a 1-month period (or less if successfully treated). At least one of these must be from the first three below.
- Delusions
- Hallucinations
- Disorganized speech (e.g., frequent derailment or incoherence).
- Grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior
- Negative symptoms (i.e., diminished emotional expression or avolition.)
B. Hallucinations and delusions for two or more weeks in the absence of a major mood episode (manic or depressive) during the entire lifetime duration of the illness.
C. Symptoms that meet the criteria for a major mood episode are present for most of the total duration of both the active and residual portions of the illness.
D. The disturbance is not the result of the effects of a substance (e.g., a drug of misuse or a medication) or another underlying medical condition.
The following are specifiers based on the primary mood episode as part of the presentation.
Bipolar type: includes episodes of mania and sometimes major depression (can be differentiated from Bipolar Disorder by ongoing mood symptoms with no return to "normal" functioning).
Depressive type: includes only major depressive episodes.
Please note the patient must meet the criteria for A-D above to be diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. It is not enough to symptoms of schizophrenia while meeting the criteria for a major mood episode.