The salvage syndrome (or Diogenes syndrome, which came from the name of the ancient Greek philosopher) was observed for the first time in 1947 in America, when two brothers died in their home with 120 tons of heterogeneous materials stored in their house. Salvage syndrome is defined as the concentration of objects that have no emotional or practical value and the refusal of the person to accept that he does not need the items he collects.

The first time that salvage syndrome was reported in the scientific community was at DSM-V (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders)  in 2013. In DSM, the syndrome is defined either as a single disorder, or as a symptom of another disorder, usually obsessive-compulsive disorder. Some also argue that salvage syndrome may also be a sub-module of attention deficit disorder.

As the DSM-V says, the criteria for the disorder are as follows:

• Continuous difficulty in disposing or segregating from goods even though the particular items do not have any significant value.
• Strong need for storing objects and discomfort related to their rejection.
• As a result, there is accumulation of a large number of unnecessary elements that fill the house and leave no room for easy movement.
• Another criterion is that it can cause agony or harm in social, professional or other areas of operation that are also important.
• They are not related to general medical condition (e.g. brain injury, cerebrovascular disease).
• They are also not limited to the symptoms of another mental disorder.

Some therapies that help deal with salvage syndrome include psychopharmacology, cognitive-behavioral therapy, education, and social support. Salvage syndrome is associated with pre-existing psychopathology such as mood disorders, schizophrenia, dementia, obsessive compulsive disorder, mental deprivation, and the specific therapies applied to the salvage syndrome help to reduce the symptoms from 30% to 60%.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy is the treatment that helps the patient understand the reason he wants to collect objects and in what ways he can reject them and organize his/her place. It also helps him/her develop decision-making skills and teach the patient to perform relaxation techniques.

Usually people with this syndrome are ignored by the family as to the size of the problem. Some interventions focus on educating people about the salvage syndrome and informing them that there are treatments that help with this   problem. Encouraging people with this syndrome is initially done through cognitive-behavioral exercises that they themselves have to do at home to change the negative knowledge they have learned. They also need to set goals that are more realistic to be able to reduce the overbearing or disastrous expectations.

Through these realistic goals, we can direct individuals, for example, to remove objects from a certain point of the house for one hour each day for a week.

Salvage syndrome is a serious but treatable disorder and has been associated with several other mental disorders. As a result, the individual sometimes poses a risk to public health, and his quality of life is also significantly reduced. If there is a quick behavioral observation and assessment by healthcare professionals, it can help in the most immediate diagnosis and treatment of the disorder.

Concluding, it is important to emphasize that people experiencing salvage syndrome have excessive stress and this can lead them to suicidal behaviors.