Psychosomatic Syndromes, Somatization and Somatoform Disorders

Abstract

A psychosomatic syndrome is defined as a syndrome in which psychological processes play a substantial role in the etiology of the illness in some of the patients. The main conclusions on the extent of the biological and psychosocial contributions to several psychosomatic syndromes are presented and the relationship of these syndromes to somatization and somatoform disorders is discussed. The syndromes summarized include fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, motility disorders of the esophagus, nonulcer dyspepsia, irritable bowel syndrome, urethral syndrome, behaviors causing disturbances of physiology, and some defined pain syndromes. The findings suggest that the extent of the biological and psychosocial contributions vary among these syndromes as well as among individuals with the same syndrome. In some syndromes the extent and nature of the biological contribution has not been established with certainty. There is evidence to suggest that many of the phenomena of the somatoform disorders are caused by clustering of psychosomatic syndromes or their incomplete or atypical manifestations and a low sensation threshold. The results of the controlled studies of various methods of psychotherapy and drug treatments of the psychosomatic syndromes are listed; these studies have practical implications because the adoption of these methods is likely to enhance the efficacy of the treatment of somatoform disorders.

Emotion understanding in children with frequent somatic complaints

“…Moreover, various physical complaints often occur simultaneously. For example, children with recurrent abdominal pain also frequently experience headaches (Alfven, 1993;Burke, Elliott, & Fleissner, 1999;Bury, 1987;Kellner, 1994;Perquin et al, 2000;Scharff, 1997). Many of these children seek medical help, even though an organic cause can only be located in less than 10% of them (Compas & Harding Thomsen, 1999;Edwards, Mullins, Johnson, & Bernardy, 1994;Raymer, Weininger, & Hamilton, 1984).…”

“…Emotional factors such as increased levels of stress, stronger negative affect, more symptoms of depression or feelings of fear often co-occur with an increase in somatic complaints (Apley, 1975;Beidel, Christ, & Long, 1991;Bonner & Finney, 1996;Garber et al, 1990;Hodges, Kline, Barbero, & Woodruff, 1985;Jolly, Wherry et al, 1994;McGrath, 1987;Raymer et al, 1984;Scharff, 1997;Walker, Garber, & Greene, 1991;Wilson Sharrer & Ryan-Wenger, 1991). Whether or not an organic cause for the physical complaints can be identified appears not to be influential (Kellner, 1994;Raymer et al, 1984;Scharff, 1997;Von Baeyer & Walker, 1999). Therefore, we based our research on children's self-reports of somatic complaints.…”

Is fibromyalgia the most common diagnosis amongst female out-patients?

“…8 Different hypotheses on the aetiology of fibromyalgia have been suggested. [9][10][11][12][13] It has also been argued that fibromyalgia is too heterogeneous a condition to consider only one single aetiology, and it has been questioned whether it is a disease entity or one end of a continuous spectrum of pain. [14][15][16] The result of this study indicates high prevalence of fibromyalgia about 40.7%.…”

El síndrome de fatiga crónica : características Psicológicas y Terapia Cognitivo-Conductual

“…El hecho de que la fatiga crónica tenga interés en sí misma, y no únicamente como un síntoma de otro trastorno, se debe también al hecho de que ésta, no sólo no es algo trivial, sino que es un fenómeno muy prevalente en la sociedad actual. Se ha sugerido que la prevalencia de la fatiga prolongada varía entre un 20 y un 40% (Kellner, 1994), pudiendo llegar a producir un grado de malestar e incapacitación similares a los asociados a otras enfermedades crónicas. Son muchos los pacientes que buscan ayuda médica debido a problemas de fatiga.…”