Kuwabara Hideki, Otsuka Michito, Shindo Masanobu, Ono Shin, Shioiri Toshiki, Someya Toshiyuki
Department of Psychiatry, Niigata University Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Niigata, Japan.
Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2007 Jun;61(3):283-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1819.2007.01664.x.
A total of 283 patients with somatoform disorder (SFD) seen in a psychiatry clinic were surveyed and their diagnostic subtypes, demographic features, and comorbidities, analyzed. The results indicate that: (i) SFD comprises 5.8% of first-visit outpatients; (ii) undifferentiated SFD (USFD) and SFD not otherwise specified (SFD-NOS) account for the majority of patients; (iii) there are 1.7-fold more women than men; (iv) age of onset is lower in patients with somatization disorder or body dysmorphic disorder and higher in patients with hypochondriasis or pain disorder; (v) the mean number of years of education was 11.2 years; and (vi) comorbid illness were seen in 24.8% of patients, and included mood disorder, anxiety disorder, and personality disorder, as well as borderline intellectual functioning and mental retardation. The data indicate that the majority of patients with SFD are given a diagnosis of residual category, such as USFD or SFD-NOS, and that the age of onset varies depending on the diagnostic subtype. SFD was more frequently seen in women, associated with comorbidities.
