Hoarding is a crippling psychiatric disorder that will be recognised for the first time as a separate diagnosis by the American Psychiatric Association.

The recognition of Hoarding Disorder (HD) means that the ease with which hoarding is diagnosed and treated will greatly increase.

Swinburne University Professor Michael Kyrios held a workshop with the Australian Psychiatric Society at the National Convention Centre yesterday to cover the diagnosis of hoarding problems, while presenting typical cases that highlight the specific components of HD. ''Hoarding is an incredibly complex disorder,'' Professor Kyrios said. It differed both from collecting and messiness. ''Collectors are very organised and are willing to discard items to add value or quality to their collection,'' he said.

''Unlike those who suffer chronic disorganisation, hoarders experience immense grief when faced with losing an item, and rates of suicide increase greatly when faced with forced clean-ups due to that grief.''

HD may affect up to 5 per cent of the population and is generally considered to be the irrational compulsion to acquire, without discarding, things that are useless or of limited value.