Other Specified Anxiety Disorder

Question 1

Other Specified Anxiety Disorder

Answer 1

This category applies to presentations in which symptoms characteristic of an anxiety disorder that cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning predominate but do not meet the full criteria for any of the disorders in the anxiety disorders diagnostic class, and do not meet criteria for adjustment disorder with anxiety or adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood. The other specified anxiety disorder category is used in situations in which the clinician chooses to communicate the specific reason that the presentation does not meet the criteria for any specific anxiety disorder. This is done by recording “other specified anxiety disorder” followed by the specific reason (e.g., “generalized anxiety occurring less often than ‘more days than not’”).

Examples of presentations that can be specified using the “other specified” designation include the following:

1) Limited-symptom attacks.
2) Generalized anxiety occurring less often than “more days than not.”
3) Khyal cap (wind attacks): See “Culture and Psychiatric Diagnosis” in Section III.
4) Ataque de nervios (attack of nerves): See “Culture and Psychiatric Diagnosis” in Section III.