Introduction: Excellent differential diagnoses can lead to better prognosis and specific management. The vision of diagnostic medicine can be utilized in psychiatry as “Diagnostic Psychiatry”. Specific diagnosis and/or precise differential diagnoses lead to better medication choice, therefore improve prognosis. This will eventually lead to fewer treatment-resistant cases as well as lower polypharmacy rates.
Background/Literature Review: In multiple psychiatric disorders the common definition of "treatment-resistant disorder” is an inadequate response to at least two medications, with adequate doses and appropriate treatment times. Apparently, this definition has focused on pharmacotherapy and missed the fundamental need to capture the vital differential diagnoses dilemmas. Diagnostic Psychiatry uncovers the roots of the problem before jumping to the management. This art as diagnostic medicine starts with precise differential diagnoses, takes into consideration the medical co-morbidities and the hidden causes of psychiatric symptoms.
Conclusion: There is a fundamental need for “Diagnostic Psychiatry”. Diagnostic psychiatry helps in decreasing treatment-resistant cases’ numbers and taking a wiser approach to management.
