Brief Psychotic Disorder is defined by which of the following?

• A. A single psychotic episode with onset and remission in less than 1 month
• B. Recurrent mood episodes with psychotic features
• C. A chronic psychotic disorder lasting more than 6 months
• D. Delusions lasting at least 1 month with hallucinations

Answer: (A)

Brief psychotic disorder centers on a sudden, short-lived spell of psychosis that resolves fully. The defining feature is a sudden onset of one or more psychotic symptoms (delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech or behavior) lasting from 1 day up to less than 1 month, with complete return to the premorbid level of functioning. The option that describes a single psychotic episode with onset and remission within a month fits this pattern precisely.

This differs from mood disorders with psychotic features, which require prominent mood symptoms alongside psychosis; from schizophrenia-spectrum disorders, which have longer-lasting symptoms (often lasting more than 6 months for schizophrenia, or a substantial portion of time); and from conditions where psychosis persists beyond a month with continuous symptoms, which would not be brief psychotic disorder.