DSM-III in Ethiopia: a feasibility study

A feasibility study of DSM-III on 40 Ethiopian visitors to a psychiatric outpatient clinic in Addis Ababa was carried out by a Dutch psychiatrist, with three of his Dutch colleagues. In spite of the highly idiosyncratic way in which Ethiopians present their complaints, the diagnostic criteria of DSM-III appeared to be useful to a certain extent. The outcome of an inter-rater reliability study was comparable with that of an American one. The results were congruent for the classes that are rather well-defined in the DSM-III, like the psychotic and affective disorders. This did not apply to the classes of the somatoform and factitious disorders. Possible reasons for this are discussed.