Arab Board Psychiatry Final Written study guide
Arab Board Psychiatry Final Written · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Arab Board Final Written Examination in Psychiatry is the written component of the higher specialty certification awarded by the Arab Board of Health Specializations, the regional body that sets and administers postgraduate medical board examinations across Arab countries. It is intended for psychiatrists who have completed accredited specialty training and are seeking consultant-level recognition, and it is typically taken alongside or after the clinical/oral component. The Arab Board Psychiatry Final Written study guide has 12 sections and about 3,020 words.
01Basic Sciences Relevant to Psychiatry
Build a working map of the dopamine pathways, because almost every psychopharmacology question resolves through them. The mesolimbic pathway (VTA to nucleus accumbens) mediates reward and positive symptoms; mesocortical (VTA to prefrontal cortex) mediates negative and cognitive symptoms; nigrostriatal (substantia nigra to striatum) explains extrapyramidal effects; tuberoinfundibular explains hyperprolactinaemia.
258 words, about 1 min02Psychopathology and Diagnostic Classification
Know the classical symptom definitions precisely, because examiners test fine distinctions. A delusion is a fixed false belief held with conviction despite evidence and not shared by one's culture; a delusional perception is a true perception given a new, delusional meaning (Schneiderian).
249 words, about 1 min03Clinical Assessment, Interviewing and Psychiatric Examination
A defensible psychiatric assessment follows a fixed sequence: presenting complaint and history of present illness, past psychiatric and medical history, medication, substance use, family and social history, developmental and forensic history, then the Mental State Examination (MSE) . The MSE is a cross-sectional snapshot organised in a set order - appearance and behaviour, speech, mood and affect, thought form and content, perception, cognition, insight, and risk.
253 words, about 1 min04Psychotic Disorders
Schizophrenia requires two or more core symptoms (delusions, hallucinations, disorganised speech, grossly disorganised or catatonic behaviour, negative symptoms) with at least one from the first three, plus functional decline and duration criteria. Know the differential: schizophreniform (1–6 months), brief psychotic disorder (<1 month with full return), delusional disorder (non-bizarre delusions, function preserved), schizoaffective (mood episodes with psychotic symptoms for ≥2 weeks in their absence), and substance/medication-induced psychosis.
246 words, about 1 min05Mood Disorders
Know the DSM-5-TR criteria for a major depressive episode (≥5 symptoms for ≥2 weeks, including depressed mood or anhedonia) and a manic episode (≥1 week of elevated/irritable mood plus ≥3 of grandiosity, decreased need for sleep, pressured speech, flight of ideas, distractibility, increased goal-directed activity, risky behaviour; ≥4 days for hypomania without marked impairment or psychosis). Distinguish bipolar I (mania), bipolar II (hypomania plus depression, no mania), and cyclothymia .
255 words, about 1 min06Anxiety, Obsessive-Compulsive and Trauma-Related Disorders
Know the defining features of generalised anxiety disorder (≥6 months of excessive worry across domains), panic disorder (recurrent unexpected attacks plus ≥1 month of concern/behaviour change), agoraphobia , social anxiety disorder , and specific phobia . Distinguish normal anxiety from disorder by duration, distress and functional impairment.
264 words, about 1 min07Substance Use Disorders
Distinguish use , harmful use/abuse , dependence (compulsion, loss of control, withdrawal, tolerance, salience), and withdrawal . DSM-5 combines abuse and dependence into a single substance use disorder with severity graded by number of criteria (mild 2–3, moderate 4–5, severe ≥6).
243 words, about 1 min08Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Assessment in children is developmental and multi-informant - history from parents/carers and school is essential, and the child's own account must be obtained where possible. Know normal developmental milestones (language, social, motor) as the baseline against which abnormality is judged.
266 words, about 1 min09Geriatric Psychiatry
The central skill is separating delirium , dementia , and depression (the "3 Ds"). Delirium is acute, fluctuating, with impaired attention and altered consciousness; dementia is chronic, progressive cognitive decline with preserved consciousness until late; depression causes pseudodementia with prominent mood change and "don't know" answers.
248 words, about 1 min10Psychotherapy and Psychological Treatments
Know the theoretical basis and target of each modality. CBT targets maladaptive cognitions and behaviours; behavioural therapy/ERP for OCD and phobias; psychodynamic therapy explores unconscious conflict and transference; interpersonal therapy (IPT) targets role transitions, grief, disputes and deficits; DBT (Linehan) targets emotion dysregulation and self-harm, combining individual and group skills; MBCT prevents depressive relapse; family therapy and systemic therapy address relational patterns; motivational interviewing builds change talk in substance use.
242 words, about 1 min11Consultation-Liaison and Organic Psychiatry
Consultation-liaison psychiatry asks: is the psychiatric presentation primary or secondary to a medical condition/substance ? Always screen for organic causes of psychiatric symptoms - the classic list includes delirium, hypoglycaemia, hypoxia, electrolyte disturbance, infection, thyroid disease, B12 deficiency, medication effects, and neurological lesions.
235 words, about 1 min12Forensic Psychiatry, Ethics and Mental Health Law
Know the core concepts of mental health law: involuntary admission criteria (mental disorder of a nature/degree warranting detention, risk to self/others, treatment available), capacity and consent to treatment , fitness to plead , criminal responsibility , and the insanity defence . Understand the difference between civil commitment and forensic/criminal detention , and the roles of tribunals and independent review.
261 words, about 1 min