Personality disorders in geropsychiatric outpatients

Area of Science:

• Geropsychiatry
• Clinical Psychology
• Psychopathology

Background:

• Personality disorders significantly impact the treatment of Axis I symptomatology in young adults.
• The prevalence and characteristics of personality disorders in elderly populations require further investigation.
• Geropsychiatric outpatients represent a vulnerable group where understanding personality disorders is crucial for effective care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the prevalence of personality disorders in a sample of geropsychiatric outpatients.
• To compare the number and types of personality disorder diagnoses in elderly patients versus young adult outpatients.
• To evaluate the diagnostic yield of a semistructured interview for personality disorders in older adults.

Main Methods:

• A semistructured interview based on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Third Edition (DSM-III) criteria was administered.
• The study included 36 geropsychiatric outpatients.
• A comparison was made with a young adult outpatient sample of 298 individuals.

Main Results:

• Over half (58%) of the elderly sample met criteria for personality disorder diagnoses.
• Elderly patients had significantly fewer personality disorders compared to the young adult sample.
• The semistructured interview yielded a greater number of diagnoses than clinical evaluation, approaching statistical significance.

Conclusions:

• Personality disorders are common in geropsychiatric outpatients.
• Elderly patients present with fewer personality disorders than younger adults.
• Semistructured interviews may offer a more comprehensive assessment of personality disorders in older adults compared to standard clinical evaluations.