Schizoaffective Disorder
Pronunciation: skits-oh-uh-FEK-tiv
A chronic mental health condition characterised by a combination of schizophrenia symptoms—such as hallucinations or delusions—and mood disorder symptoms such as depression or mania.
Full Definition
Schizoaffective disorder is a psychiatric diagnosis applied when a patient experiences a major mood episode (depressive or manic) concurrently with the core positive symptoms of schizophrenia, with psychosis also present for at least two weeks in the absence of a mood episode. Editors will encounter two specifiers in clinical documents: bipolar type and depressive type. The term is frequently misspelled as 'schizo-affective' (with a hyphen); current DSM-5-TR convention renders it as one unhyphenated word. Distinguishing it from comorbid schizophrenia and bipolar disorder is a common diagnostic challenge reflected in clinical notes and assessment reports.
Usage
Usage note: Do not hyphenate. Do not conflate with schizophrenia; the mood component is diagnostically essential.
In Context
- "The discharge summary noted a principal diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder, bipolar type, with a secondary diagnosis of substance use disorder." — Discharge Summary
- "Editors must ensure 'schizoaffective disorder' appears without a hyphen in all clinical documentation per current DSM-5-TR convention." — Style Guide Note