Clinical science · Descriptive psychopathology · Evidence-based psychiatry

Major Psychiatric Disorders: Clinical Phenomenology & Treatment

Disorder-centred evidence profiles covering aetiology, epidemiology, lived psychopathology, explanatory hypotheses and treatment. The suicidal process is retained as one secondary clinical node—not the organising theme.

WHO mhGAP 2023IPTS · 3ST · IMVSystematic reviews & meta-analysesNot a risk prediction instrumentDownload full PDF
Artwork: Vincent van Gogh, The Starry Night (1889) · Public-domain reproduction via Wikimedia Commons

01 · Select a primary disorder node

The psychiatric disorders remain the main organising structure. Select a node to open its full evidence dossier.

Primary disorder layer

Related severe mental disorders

Kept distinct from the common mental disorder category.

Secondary disorder layer

02 · Disorder evidence dossier

Dossier sequence: aetiology → epidemiology → phenomenology & psychopathology → explanatory hypotheses → one secondary node on the suicidal process → treatment. This is an educational sequence, not a causal chain.

Common mental disorder
Depressive disorder

Major depressive disorder

Evidence profile
Phenomenological assessment lens
Describe the experienceWhat is experienced, in what form, how intensely, how often, in which context, and with what personal meaning?
Explore the lived structureTime and future · body and emotion · agency and selfhood · lived space and the social world.
Separate levels of explanationFirst-person report and observed signs are clinical data; diagnosis uses recognised criteria; causal mechanisms remain hypotheses unless directly established.
This lens enriches—not replaces—diagnostic assessment, longitudinal history, cultural formulation, collateral information where appropriate, and validated measures. In Cambodia, ask how distress is locally named and embodied; khyâl attacks are discussed in trauma literature as one culturally patterned idiom of distress, not as a diagnosis or a synonym for PTSD or panic disorder.

04 · Additional clinical and psychosocial nodes

Existing content retained as smaller domains that may modify clinical presentation, context or suicide-related risk.

Related domain

Select a small node to inspect the construct.

Clinical use and limitations. Phenomenological research includes qualitative studies, conceptual models, clinical reviews and emerging measurement tools; its evidence base is not equivalent to the evidence supporting diagnostic criteria, epidemiological estimates or treatment guidelines. Use it to enrich formulation and patient-centred assessment, not to infer causation or replace validated diagnosis. This is a scientific teaching and policy-planning model, not a diagnostic tool or individual suicide-risk calculator. Disorder-level prevalence and associations are not individual probabilities. Aetiological hypotheses are not equivalent to established causal mechanisms or clinical biomarkers. Medication selection requires individual assessment, monitoring, pregnancy / reproductive-safety review where relevant, and local prescribing guidance. Drug-dose cards are adult educational examples and must not be applied without checking the locally approved product label, formulation, contraindications and patient-specific factors. Suicidal thoughts and behaviour require direct assessment regardless of diagnosis.
Evidence cut-off: 14 November 2026. Epidemiological figures are global estimates from the stated year and case definition. WHO recommendations are labelled with their recommendation strength and certainty when available. Guideline recommendations can differ by population, resource setting and jurisdiction.