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Objectives: Severe and nonepisodic irritabilities are prevalent in 3.3% of children and needs intensive clinical care. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) lacks any guidance on their diagnosis and this has led to controversies among clinicians in their diagnosis and treatment. Workgroups of DSM-5 have tried to remove this paucity. Method: Data were collected through review of the literature appeared until the end of 2012 by searching in relevant English and Persian databases. Of retrieved materials, 66 studies including systematic reviews, meta-analyses, original articles and case reports were extracted. Full-texts of 46 studies and inevitably 20 abstracts were reviewed. The quality of studies were checked separately and qualified ones were reviewed. Results: There has been controversies among professionals about significance of irritability in diagnosing psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents. The dominant clinical school in past decade, formulated severe and nonepisodic irritabilities as being characteristic of bipolar disorder in children. Studies suggest that the diagnostic value of irritability depends on its severity and being episodic or nonepisodic. It seems that irritability can have diagnostic and predictive value for bipolar disorder, only if being severe and episodic. In DSM-5, this condition is called Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder (DMDD) and its criteria is established. Conclusion: It is important that children suffering severe nonepisodic irritabilities have a home in DSM-5 to eliminate clinicians’ confusion, while facilitating precise research for classifying them accurately according to diagnosis and treatment.

Keywords: bipolar disorder, irritable mood, child, DSM-5

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