Ataque de nervios (Spanish pronunciation:[aˈtakeðeˈneɾβjos]) (
F45.8,
R45.0), also known as nervous tension[1]) is a psychological syndrome mostly associated, in the United States, with Spanish-speaking people from the
Caribbean, although commonly identified among all Iberian-descended cultures. Ataque de nervios translates into English as "attack of nerves",[2] although it is used in its common cultural form to refer to a specific pattern of symptoms, rather than being a general term for feeling nervous.[3]
The
Diccionario Panhispánico de Términos Médicos translates it as "attack of nerves, nervous breakdown".[4]
The condition appears in Appendix I of the revised fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) as a
culture-bound syndrome.[5][6]
Classification
Despite comparisons to
panic attacks, investigators have identified ataque de nervios as a separate syndrome with measured differences in anxiety sensitivity, and types of attacks. Marlene Steinberg, an Associate Research Scientist at Yale University stated that because it is similar to
Multiple Personality Disorder, some Hispanics may be misdiagnosed with an ataque de nervios syndrome instead.[1][2][7]
Symptoms
Reported aspects of the syndrome include uncontrollable screaming or shouting, crying, trembling, sensations of heat rising in the chest and head,
dissociative experiences, and verbal or physical aggression.[8][9][10] The syndrome is usually associated with a stressful event relating to the family, although it is not specifically defined as arising from such occurrences.[11] It does not involve intense fear.[4]
History
Ataque de nervios was first mentioned after studies were conducted by US psychiatrists who focused on healthcare for Hispanic populations, particularly individuals who were Puerto Rican and living in the United States .[12]
^Liebowitz, M. R.; Salmán, E.; Jusino, C. M.; Garfinkel, R.; Street, L.; Cárdenas, D. L.; Silvestre, J.; Fyer, A. J.; Carrasco, J. L.; Davies, S. (1994). "Ataque de nervios and panic disorder". American Journal of Psychiatry. 151 (6): 871–875.
doi:
10.1176/ajp.151.6.871.
PMID8184996.
^
ab"DPTM Resultados". Diccionario panhispánico de términos médicos (in Spanish). Real Academia Nacional de Medicina de España, ALANAM. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
^Keough M. E., Timpano K. R., Schmidt N. B. (2009). "Ataques de nervios: culturally bound and distinct from panic attacks?". Depress. Anxiety. 26 (1): 16–21.
doi:
10.1002/da.20498.
PMID18781666.{{
cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (
link)
^Lewis-Fernandez, R., Guarnaccia, P. J., Patel, S., Lizardi, D., & Diaz, N. (2005). Ataque de Nervios: Anthropological, epidemiological, and clinical dimensions of a cultural syndrome. In A. M. Georgiopoulos & J. F. Rosenbaum (Eds.), Perspectives in cross-cultural psychiatry. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.
^Rhoades, G., & Sar, V. (2005). Trauma and dissociation in a cross-cultural perspective: Not just a North American phenomenom. Binghamton, NY: The Hawthorn Press.