DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2018.v06i12.050

Pages: 4898-4905

The formation of the concept of ‘First-episode Psychosis’ dates back to 1983, when the term was first used to describe patients suffering from schizophreniform disorder who were followed till the development of schizophrenia. Though initially it referred to first-episode schizophrenia, gradually it stood as an independent diagnosis as the early intervention in psychosis services developed world-wide. Owing to the lack of consensus regarding the definition of the first-episode psychosis, various researchers operationalised the definitions for an individual study. This resulted in incomparability of the researches amongst themselves. However, the new label, often used in the early intervention services has been very useful to address the problem in its infancy, decreasing the possibility of more extensive psychological, social and biological damage in the early critical period of the illness.