Delusions that persist for at least 1 month, in the absence of other symptoms, are the hallmark of delusional disorder. The person must not have other prominent symptoms of schizophrenia, and there must be no obvious hallucinations or odd behaviors. Delusional disorder does not always produce significant inability to function socially or vocationally. Some common types of delusions, with examples of each, are: that some important person is in love with the person (erotomanic delusional disorder), or that the person is being poisoned or followed or infected (persecutory type), or that the person's sexual partner is being unfaithful (jealous type), or that the person has made a wonderful invention or is critical to the welfare of the world (grandiose type), in the absence of evidence that any of the foregoing are true. The erotomanic and jealous types may be dangerous to the people directly involved in the delusion, or to someone who may be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The onset of delusional disorder is usually in middle to later life, and there is sometimes "spontaneous" remission after a few months. Unfortunately, relapses are also not unusual. On the fortunate side, delusional disorder is rare, probably having a lifetime likelihood of between a chance in 2000 and a chance in 1000.

Visit a web site with a well-balanced article on delusional disorders.

                                                                                                                                Last updated  12/19/03