How Differential Diagnosis is made in social phobia?
Common anxiety symptoms occur across disorders, which can make diagnosis of social phobia difficult.
SP must be differentiated from other psychiatric disorders, which have similar characteristics, including:
- Panic disorder with or without agoraphobia
- Separation anxiety in children
- Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) or specific phobia
- Marked fear of being focus of attention; avoidance of meeting unfamiliar people and close scrutiny by others
- Fear of behaving in embarrassing orhumiliating way
- At least 2 symptoms of anxiety and of: blushing/shaking; fear of defecation/micturition; vomiting
Differential Diagnoses
Disorder/Condition Differentiating Feature(s)
- Social Phobia; Anxiety and fear of embarrassment or humiliation is linked to scrutiny by others
- Panic Disorder; Panic attacks often come "out of the blue" and are not exclusively related to social or performance situations
- Agoraphobia; Fear centers around situations from which escape may be difficult
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder; Anxiety and worry are due to causes not restricted to social or work
- Specific Phobia Situations; fear of embarrassment or humiliation is not main focus
- Performance Anxiety; Anxiety and avoidance may not lead to clinically significant
- Stage Fright; Shyness impairment or marked distress
Social Phobia Importance |
Social Phobia Screening |
Social Phobia Diagnosis |
Social Phobia Differential Diagnosis |
Social Phobia ComorbidityWhat are the associated diseases with social phobia? What is the comorbidity of social phobia? |
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