61st Annual Meeting

October 18 - 25, 2014

Clinical Case Conference 2 (open)

Pseudosymptoms and Pseudo-Pseudosymptoms, Part 2: Did You Miss the Diagnosis?

Have you ever wondered if a patient referred for psychiatric treatment may, in fact, have an undiagnosed, underlying neurologic disorder as the root of psychiatric symptoms? If a patient has been medically cleared by a neurologist’s diagnostic evaluation, should it be trusted without question? What if an alternative diagnosis is suspected? Conversely, is a neurologic diagnosis mistaken and the condition psychiatric in nature? This CCC addresses the common challenges faced by child and adolescent psychiatrists when clarifying psychiatric versus neurologic underpinnings for presentation. Participants gain knowledge of neurological disorders that can present with predominantly psychiatric manifestations and become aware of clinical “red flags” that can lead to questions regarding diagnosis. Psychosis and altered consciousness, mood and anxiety disorders, and movement disorders cases are used to illustrate some of the diagnostic difficulties encountered by child and adolescent psychiatrists.