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BMC Medicine
Published in: BMC Medicine 1/2017

Open Access 01-12-2017 | Opinion

The new field of ‘precision psychiatry’

Authors: Brisa S. Fernandes, Leanne M. Williams, Johann Steiner, Marion Leboyer, André F. Carvalho, Michael Berk

Published in: BMC Medicine | Issue 1/2017

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Abstract

Background

Precision medicine is a new and important topic in psychiatry. Psychiatry has not yet benefited from the advanced diagnostic and therapeutic technologies that form an integral part of other clinical specialties. Thus, the vision of precision medicine as applied to psychiatry – ‘precision psychiatry’ – promises to be even more transformative than in other fields of medicine, which have already lessened the translational gap.

Discussion

Herein, we describe ‘precision psychiatry’ and how its several implications promise to transform the psychiatric landscape. We pay particular attention to biomarkers and to how the development of new technologies now makes their discovery possible and timely. The adoption of the term ‘precision psychiatry’ will help propel the field, since the current term ‘precision medicine’, as applied to psychiatry, is impractical and does not appropriately distinguish the field. Naming the field ‘precision psychiatry’ will help establish a stronger, unique identity to what promises to be the most important area in psychiatry in years to come.

Conclusion

In summary, we provide a wide-angle lens overview of what this new field is, suggest how to propel the field forward, and provide a vision of the near future, with ‘precision psychiatry’ representing a paradigm shift that promises to change the landscape of how psychiatry is currently conceived.
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Metadata
Title
The new field of ‘precision psychiatry’
Authors
Brisa S. Fernandes
Leanne M. Williams
Johann Steiner
Marion Leboyer
André F. Carvalho
Michael Berk
Publication date
01-12-2017
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Medicine / Issue 1/2017
Electronic ISSN: 1741-7015
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12916-017-0849-x

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