[Symptoms related to addiction: elements for the differential diagnosis with personality disorders]

Some manifestations, observed in situations of addiction, are often interpreted as symptoms of a personality disorder. On the contrary, they may not be referable to personality structural aspects, but they hold rather a functional aspect, linked to the implications of the relationship between the individual and the object of addiction. In particular, the personal meaning given to addiction holds an important role as regards the intensity of this relationship. This recalls the necessity of a thorough examination for differential diagnosis. The awareness of intervening in behaviour modalities, due to the process of addiction and not to preexistent personality features, modifies the perspective of action. As a result, generic modalities of treatment, leading to confused therapeutic routes, would be overcome, presuming that acting on other aspects interferes in addiction phenomena. In that way, it would be possible to pick out specific routes to act from the therapeutic point of view on the focus of addiction. The recovery of the meaning the patient gives to it and a following elaboration can bring to the awareness of different emotional and behavioural options to face moments that can reestablish the individual emotional process at the basis of addiction. From an organizational point of view, it would be possible to reserve the articulated and complex interventions for cases of comorbidity to those who really require.