PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Rodgers, Carla AU - Baird, John A. TI - Commentary: The Lucid Interval—Coping with Unscientific Terminology DP - 2015 Sep 01 TA - Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online PG - 298--299 VI - 43 IP - 3 4099 - http://jaapl.org/content/43/3/298.short 4100 - http://jaapl.org/content/43/3/298.full SO - J Am Acad Psychiatry Law2015 Sep 01; 43 AB - The authors agree with Shulman et al. in their assertion that the term “lucid interval” does not describe what is now known to occur in the fluctuating mental status of some demented individuals. Therefore, its use by the courts to determine competency in such persons can result in an unjust outcome. However, we believe such criticism as Shulman and his coauthors levied at the legal profession should be broadened to consider antiquated and nonscientific terminology in our own field of psychiatry.