Dataset Information

The Relationship of Hypochondriasis to Anxiety, Depressive, and Somatoform Disorders.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Though the phenotype of anxiety about medical illness has long been recognized, there continues to be debate as to whether it is a distinct psychiatric disorder and, if so, to which diagnostic category it belongs.

Objective

Our objective was to investigate the pattern of psychiatric comorbidity in hypochondriasis (HC) and to assess the relationship of health anxiety to anxiety, depressive, and somatoform disorders.

Methods

Data were collected as part of a clinical trial on treatment methods for HC. In all, 194 participants meeting criteria for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (DSM-IV) HC were assessed by sociodemographic variables, results of structured diagnostic interviews, and validated instruments for assessing various symptom dimensions of psychopathology.

Results

Most of the individuals with HC had comorbid psychiatric illness; the mean number of comorbid diagnoses was 1.4, and 35.1% had HC as their only diagnosis. Participants were more likely to have only comorbid anxiety disorders than only comorbid depressive or somatoform disorders. Multiple regression analysis of continuous measures of symptoms revealed the strongest correlation of health anxiety with anxiety symptoms, and a weaker correlation with somatoform symptoms; in multiple regression analysis, there was no correlation between health anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Conclusion

Our findings suggest that the entity of health anxiety (HC in DSM-IV and illness anxiety disorder in DSM-5) is a clinical syndrome distinct from other psychiatric disorders. Analysis of comorbidity patterns and continuous measures of symptoms suggest that its appropriate classification is with anxiety rather than somatoform or mood disorders.

SUBMITTER: Scarella TM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4792743 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar-Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

The Relationship of Hypochondriasis to Anxiety, Depressive, and Somatoform Disorders.

Scarella Timothy M TM Laferton Johannes A C JA Ahern David K DK Fallon Brian A BA Barsky Arthur A

Psychosomatics 20151023 2

<h4>Background</h4>Though the phenotype of anxiety about medical illness has long been recognized, there continues to be debate as to whether it is a distinct psychiatric disorder and, if so, to which diagnostic category it belongs.<h4>Objective</h4>Our objective was to investigate the pattern of psychiatric comorbidity in hypochondriasis (HC) and to assess the relationship of health anxiety to anxiety, depressive, and somatoform disorders.<h4>Methods</h4>Data were collected as part of a clinica ...[more]

PMID: 26785798

Similar Datasets

Project description:ObjectiveAlthough multimodal interventions are recommended in patients with severe depressive and/or anxiety disorders, available evidence is scarce. Therefore, the current study evaluates the effectiveness of an outpatient secondary care interdisciplinary multimodal integrative healthcare program, delivered within a transdiagnostic framework, for patients with (comorbid) depressive and/or anxiety disorders.MethodsParticipants were 3,900 patients diagnosed with a depressive and/or anxiety disorder. The primary outcome was Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) measured with the Research and Development-36 (RAND-36). Secondary outcomes included: (1) current psychological and physical symptoms measured with the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) and (2) symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress measured with the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS). The healthcare program consisted of two active treatment phases: main 20-week program and a subsequent continuation-phase intervention (i.e., 12-month relapse prevention program). Mixed linear models were used to examine the effects of the healthcare program on primary/secondary outcomes over four time points: before start 20-week program (T0), halfway 20-week program (T1), end of 20-week program (T2) and end of 12-month relapse prevention program (T3).ResultsResults showed significant improvements from T0 to T2 for the primary variable (i.e., RAND-36) and secondary variables (i.e., BSI/DASS). During the 12-month relapse prevention program, further significant improvements were mainly observed for secondary variables (i.e., BSI/DASS) and to a lesser extent for the primary variable (i.e., RAND-36). At the end of the relapse prevention program (i.e., T3), 63% of patients achieved remission of depressive symptoms (i.e., DASS depression score ≤ 9) and 67% of patients achieved remission of anxiety symptoms (i.e., DASS anxiety score ≤ 7).ConclusionAn interdisciplinary multimodal integrative healthcare program, delivered within a transdiagnostic framework, seems effective for patients suffering from depressive and/or anxiety disorders with regard to HRQoL and symptoms of psychopathology. As reimbursement and funding for interdisciplinary multimodal interventions in this patient group has been under pressure in recent years, this study could add important evidence by reporting on routinely collected outcome data from a large patient group. Future studies should further investigate the long-term stability of treatment outcomes after interdisciplinary multimodal interventions for patients suffering from depressive and/or anxiety disorders.

Dataset Information

The Relationship of Hypochondriasis to Anxiety, Depressive, and Somatoform Disorders.

Background

Objective

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

The Relationship of Hypochondriasis to Anxiety, Depressive, and Somatoform Disorders.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets