Paranoid Personality Disorder
Key points
- People with paranoid personality disorder are distrustful and suspicious and anticipate harm and betrayal.
- Paranoid personality disorder has a lifetime prevalence of 0.5% to 2.5% of the general population.
- Family studies suggest a link to delusional disorder (paranoid type).
- History and Mental Status Examination People with paranoid personality disorder are distrustful, suspicious and see the world as malevolent.
Paranoid Personality Disorder
People with paranoid personality disorder are distrustful and suspicious and anticipate harm and betrayal.
Epidemiology
Paranoid personality disorder has a lifetime prevalence of 0.5% to 2.5% of the general population. Relatives of chronic schizophrenics and patients with persecutory delusional disorders show an increased prevalence of paranoid personality disorder.
Etiology
Environmental precursors are unclear. Family studies suggest a link to delusional disorder (paranoid type).
There appears to be a small increase in prevalence among relatives of schizophrenics.
Clinical Manifestations
History and Mental Status Examination
People with paranoid personality disorder are distrustful, suspicious and see the world as malevolent.
They anticipate harm, betrayal, and deception. Not surprisingly, they are not forthcoming about themselves. They require emotional distance.
Differential Diagnosis
The key distinction is to separate paranoia associated with psychotic disorders from paranoid personality disorder, especially because paranoia associated with psychotic disorders is generally responsive to antipsychotic medications.
Written and revised by
David Cohen, M.D.
Our doctors write and review articles for accuracy and keep them up to date.
health.am provides general information, not medical advice. Always consult a qualified health professional about your own health.
Explore health topics
More in this topic
Mental Health →
NewsPersonality Disorders and Violence Potential
Violence associated with personality disorders is usually best viewed separately from psychiatric diagnosis, as a syndrome of violence rather than a syndrome of diagnosis. The authors describe eight categories of…
8 August 2007
NewsPostpartum-onset major depression is associated with personality disorders
The objective of the study was to investigate the incidence rate of postpartum-onset major depression (PPMD) and to examine associated sociodemographic characteristics, obstetric factors, and personality disorders.…
6 August 2007
NewsThe relationship between avoidant personality disorder and social phobia: study
The main explanatory hypothesis for the distinction between social phobia (SP) and avoidant personality disorder (APD) has been the severity continuum hypothesis, stating that APD only differs from SP in terms of…
