Definition Positive symptoms are thoughts, behaviors, or sensory perceptions present in a person with a mental disorder, but not present in people in the normal population. Description Examples of positive symptoms are hallucinations (seeing, hearing, or smelling things not really there), delusions (belief in ideas not based on reality), disorganized speech (loose association between ideas, [...]
Definition Polysubstance dependence refers to a type of substance dependence disorder in which an individual uses at least three different classes of substances indiscriminately and does not have a favorite drug that qualifies for dependence on its own. Description Polysubstance dependence is listed as a substance disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental [...]
Definition Polysomnography is a series of tests performed on patients while they sleep. Polysomnography is a comprehensive overnight procedure that evaluates sleep disorders. It generally includes monitoring of the patient’s airflow through the nose and mouth, blood pressure, heartbeat as measured by an electrocardiograph, blood oxygen level, brain wave patterns, eye movements, and the movements [...]
Definition Play therapy refers to a method of psychotherapy with children in which a therapist uses a child’s fantasies and the symbolic meanings of his or her play as a medium for understanding and communication with the child. Purpose The aim of play therapy is to decrease those behavioral and emotional difficulties that interfere significantly [...]
Definition Pimozide is an atypical antipsychotic drug used to treat serious motor and verbal tics associated with Tourette’s syndrome. It is sold under the brand name Orap. Purpose Pimozide is classified as an atypical antipsychotic drug. It is structurally similar to another drug, haloperidol, which was the first drug to be used in Tourette’s syndrome. [...]
Definition Pica is a term that refers to cravings for substances that are not foods. Materials consumed by patients with pica include dirt, ice, clay, glue, sand, chalk, beeswax, chewing gum, laundry starch, and hair. Description Pica is the craving or ingestion of nonfood items. The cravings found in patients diagnosed with pica may be [...]
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Definition Phonological disorder occurs when a child does not develop the ability to produce some or all sounds necessary for speech that are normally used at his or her age. Description Phonological disorder is sometimes referred to as articulation disorder, developmental articulation disorder, or speech sound production disorder. If there is no known cause, it [...]
Definition Phenelzine is classified as a monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitor. In the United States, phenelzine is sold under the brand name Nardil. Purpose Phenelzine is used to treat certain types of serious depression and severe depression complicated by severe anxiety that do not respond to other antidepressant drugs. Description Phenelzine is a member of a [...]
Definition Phencyclidine (PCP) is a street drug known as “angel dust” that causes physiological changes to the nervous and circulatory system, disturbances in thinking and behavior, and can cause hallucinations, psychotic disorder, mood disorder, and anxiety disorder. Description Phencyclidine (PCP) is the best known of several related drugs including ketamine, cyclohexamine, and dizocilpine. PCP was [...]
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Definition Pervasive developmental disorders are a group of conditions originating in childhood that involve serious impairment in several areas, including physical, behavioral, cognitive, social, and language development. Description Pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) are thought to be genetically based, with no evidence linking them to environmental factors; their incidence in the general population is estimated at [...]