ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews current methods for diagnosing, subclassifying, and measuring symptom severity in the affective disorders. Biological and psychological treatment methods are reviewed; suggestions for how to select patients for specific treatments in this heterogeneous group of disorders are offered. The affective disorders include a number of distinct psychopathological conditions that differ in their response to different treatments. Atypical Depressive Disorder is a diagnosis reserved for individuals with depressive symptoms that cannot be classified as having a Major or Minor or Adjustment Disorder. A general medical assessment is absolutely essential in the evaluation of patients with minor or major depressive or manic symptomatology because of the many medical disorders that can imitate or be indistinguishable from psychiatric disorders. While routine psychological testing with the MMPI, Rorschach and other standard tests may be of value in some depressed patients, recent research suggests that measurement of specific cognitive distortions and attitudes may also provide adjuncts to standard psychometric assessments.
