What is Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder?

A diagnosis of “hallucinogen persisting perception disorder” may be given when:

• A person reexperiences one or more of the perceptual symptoms that were experienced while intoxicated with a hallucinogen (e.g., geometric hallucinations, false perceptions of movement in the peripheral visual fields, flashes of color, intensified colors, trails of images of moving objects, positive afterimages, halos around objects, macropsia and micropsia)
• The symptoms cause significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
• The symptoms are not attributable to another medical condition (e.g., anatomical lesions and infections of the brain, visual epilepsies) and are not better explained by another mental disorder (e.g., delirium, major neurocognitive disorder, schizophrenia) or hypnopompic hallucinations.

Three comorbid conditions are associated with hallucinogen persisting disorder: panic disorder, major depression, and alcohol dependence.