29th January 2024

Diagnostic criteria

ICD10 outlines that at least one of the symptoms or syndromes listed under (1), or at least two of the symptoms and signs under (2) should be present most of the time during an episode, for 1 month (or at least some of the time most of the days). These symptoms MUST be in the absence of substance misuse or an organic cause (e.g. brain tumour, temporal lobe epilepsy) or significant mood disorder. Once a diagnosis of schizophrenia has been established, it can be further sub-classified based on prominent symptomatology.


1. At least ONE of the following must be present:	2. Or at least TWO of the following:
Thought echo, thought insertion or withdrawal, or thought broadcast Delusions of control, influence, passivity, including specific thoughts, actions or sensations, delusional perception Hallucinatory voices giving a running commentary on the patient’s behaviour, discussing the patient amongst themselves, or other types of hallucinatory voices coming from some part of the body Persistent delusions of other kinds that are implausible and culturally irrelevant (e.g., being in control of spirits)	Persistent hallucinations occurring every day for at least 1 month when accompanied by delusions (fleeting or half-formed) without clear affective content or when accompanied by persistent overvalued ideas Neologisms, breaks or interpolations in train of thought, resulting in incoherent, irrelevant speech Catatonic behaviour such as posturing, waxy flexibility, mutism and stupor Negative symptoms such as marked apathy, paucity of speech, blunting or incongruity of affect and responses

1. At least ONE of the following must be present:

2. Or at least TWO of the following:

Thought echo, thought insertion or withdrawal, or thought broadcast
Delusions of control, influence, passivity, including specific thoughts, actions or sensations, delusional perception
Hallucinatory voices giving a running commentary on the patient’s behaviour, discussing the patient amongst themselves, or other types of hallucinatory voices coming from some part of the body
Persistent delusions of other kinds that are implausible and culturally irrelevant (e.g., being in control of spirits)

Persistent hallucinations occurring every day for at least 1 month when accompanied by delusions (fleeting or half-formed) without clear affective content or when accompanied by persistent overvalued ideas
Neologisms, breaks or interpolations in train of thought, resulting in incoherent, irrelevant speech
Catatonic behaviour such as posturing, waxy flexibility, mutism and stupor
Negative symptoms such as marked apathy, paucity of speech, blunting or incongruity of affect and responses

Source: Adapted from: World Health Organisation. ICD-10 classification of mental and behavioural disorders: Diagnostic criteria for research [internet]. World Health Organisation; 1993 [cited 2022 July 14]. Available from: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/37108/9241544554.pdf

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