[The significance of incest experience for the development of psychiatric and psychosomatic diseases].

A history intrafamilial sexual child abuse was dicited from 33 patients (20%), admitted to the Psychiatric Department (Psychosomatic Unit) of the University Clinics of Innsbruck in 1989. They exhibited quite different psychopathologies, with no typical incest syndrome, however, self-destructive behaviours of different kinds appeared to be characteristic of sexually abused patients. Experiences of separation and loss could be seen as the most frequent trigger for mental and psychosomatic disorders. The importance of child sexual abuse as a vulnerability factor, the necessity to consider the possibility of sexual abuse during childhood in all cases of mental disorder and the importance of the therapist's empathy as a precondition for the patient's ability to speak about the traumatic experience are discussed.