Pharmacological stress diathesis syndromes

Recent descriptions of discontinuation syndromes following treatment with antidepressants and antipsychotics, in some cases long lasting, challenge both public and scientific models of addiction and drug dependence. Antipsychotic and antidepressant drug dependencies point to a need to identify predisposing constitutional and personality factors in the patient, pharmacological risk factors in the drug and aspects of therapeutic style that may contribute to the development of stress syndromes. The stress syndromes following antipsychotics also point to the probable existence of a range of syndromes emerging within treatment. The characteristics of these need to be established.