Positive and negative symptoms of borderline personality disorder

Problems with diagnosis in psychiatry in general and more specifically in borderline personality disorder (BPD) are discussed. On the basis of the best researched and most used diagnostic descriptions of BPD, a list of distinctive borderline symptoms is made. These distinctive symptoms are compared with the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), and it is stated that the distinctive borderline symptoms will score on both the positive and the negative syndrome scales. The implications of this in connection with dynamic theories and the outcome of psychopharmacological therapy are discussed.