Comorbidity Issues and Treatment in Chronic Mental Illness

Abstract

Comorbidity refers to presence of one or more additional disorders along with a primary disorder. It affects the prognosis and course of treatment. It is often difficult for clinician to make correct diagnosis in presence of various disorders. The clinical picture of various disorders interferes with treatment process and the outcome. There are some disorders in psychiatry, known as chronic illness. These are schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. All these three disorder have a major effect on individual's life. Anxiety, depression, substance abuse and panic symptoms are common in schizophrenia; hence the clinical picture changes frequently. While the literature suggests that presence of two or three disorders make treatment worse, hence multidisciplinary treatment need to be used.