For its management , experts agreed in considering  verbal de-escalation  and  environmental modification techniques  as first choice , considering physical restraint as a last resort strategy .
BACKGROUND Psychomotor agitation is associated with different psychiatric conditions and represents an important issue in psychiatry .
Current recommendations on agitation in psychiatry are not univocal .
Actually , an improper assessment and management may result in unnecessary coercive or sedative treatments .
A thorough and balanced review plus an expert consensus can guide assessment and treatment decisions .
The Overt Agitation Severity Scale for the objective rating of agitation.
Two studies tested the reliability and validity of the  Overt Agitation Severity Scale ( OASS )  , a new instrument developed to define and objective ly rate the severity of  agitated behavior . The authors postulate that agitation should be conceptualized as vocal and motor behaviors on a continuum of expressions that extends from anxiety to aggression . Content validity through expert agreement was achieved in the development of test construction over a 2-year period . Results of two pilot studies ( n = 25 and n = 14 subjects ) established the reliability and validity of the OASS  to measure agitation severity . The OASS differs from other agitation scales in that it confines its rating exclusively to observable behavioral manifestations of agitation
For its management , experts agreed in considering  verbal de-escalation  and  environmental modification techniques  as first choice , considering physical restraint as a last resort strategy .
BACKGROUND Psychomotor agitation is associated with different psychiatric conditions and represents an important issue in psychiatry .
Current recommendations on agitation in psychiatry are not univocal .
Actually , an improper assessment and management may result in unnecessary coercive or sedative treatments .
A thorough and balanced review plus an expert consensus can guide assessment and treatment decisions .