   psychosis refers to an abnormal condition of the mind, and is a generic psychiatric term for a mental state often described as involving a "loss of contact with reality". people with psychosis are described as psychotic. people experiencing psychosis may exhibit some personality changes and thought disorder. depending on its severity, this may be accompanied by unusual or bizarre behavior, as well as difficulty with social interaction and impairment in carrying out daily life activities. psychosis (as a sign of a psychiatric disorder) is a diagnosis of exclusion. that is, a new-onset episode of psychosis is not considered a symptom of a psychiatric disorder until other relevant and known causes of psychosis are properly excluded. medical and biological laboratory tests should exclude central nervous system diseases and injuries, diseases and injuries of other organs, psychoactive substances, toxins, and prescribed medications as causes of symptoms of psychosis before any psychiatric illness can be diagnosed. in medical training, psychosis as a sign of illness is often compared to fever since both can have multiple causes that are not readily apparent. the term "psychosis" is very broad and can mean anything from relatively normal aberrant experiences through to the complex and catatonic expressions of schizophrenia and bipolar type 1 disorder.american psychiatric association, 1994 the diagnostic and statistical manual revision iv (dsm-iv){{cite web|last=yuhas|first=daisy|title=throughout history, defining schizophrenia has remained a challenge (timeline)|url=http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=throughout-history-defining-schizophrenia-has-remained-challenge|publisher=scientific american mind 
Psychiatric_diagnosis Psychiatry Psychopathology Psychosis