TY - CHAP M1 - Book, Section TI - Personality Disorders A1 - Reus, Victor I. A2 - Jameson, J. Larry A2 - Fauci, Anthony S. A2 - Kasper, Dennis L. A2 - Hauser, Stephen L. A2 - Longo, Dan L. A2 - Loscalzo, Joseph PY - 2018 T2 - Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 20e AB - Personality disorders are characteristic patterns of thinking, feeling, and interpersonal behavior that are relatively inflexible and cause significant functional impairment or subjective distress for the individual. The observed behaviors are not secondary to another mental disorder, nor are they precipitated by substance abuse or a general medical condition. This distinction is often difficult to make in clinical practice, because personality change may be the first sign of serious neurologic, endocrine, or other medical illness. Patients with frontal lobe tumors, for example, can present with changes in motivation and personality while the results of the neurologic examination remain within normal limits. Individuals with personality disorders are often regarded as “difficult patients” in clinical medical practice because they are seen as excessively demanding and/or unwilling to follow recommended treatment plans. Although DSM-5 portrays personality disorders as qualitatively distinct categories, there is an alternative and emerging perspective that personality characteristics vary as a continuum between normal functioning and formal mental disorder, the essential features being moderate or greater impairment in self/interpersonal functioning and one or more pathological personality traits. SN - PB - McGraw-Hill Education CY - New York, NY Y2 - 2024/03/28 UR - accesspharmacy.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1177607827 ER -