What are the real problems for patients with functional dyspepsia?

BACKGROUND

Patients with functional dyspepsia (FD) have more complaints than just the dyspepsia.

METHOD

One hundred FD patients were assessed with regard to psychologic, medical, and social factors, before randomization, in a study of cognitive therapy. They were asked to list their main problem areas or 'target complaints'.

RESULTS

Dyspepsia was the third most frequent target complaint (26 patients), and anxiety was the most frequent one (65 patients). Patients identifying dyspepsia as a target complaint differed from the other FD patients in several aspects. They had significantly more dyspeptic symptoms (p < 0.05) and scored significantly higher on multiple somatic complaints (p = 0.001), depression (p = 0.025), general psychopathology (p = 0.043), the global assessment scale (p = 0.001), and the General Health Questionnaire (p = 0.040). However, they did not have more somatic predisposing factors like consumption of alcohol and coffee or infection with Helicobacter pylori than the patients with other target complaints.

CONCLUSIONS

Anxiety and not dyspepsia was the most frequent target complaint, and patients who identified dyspepsia as a target complaint did not have more somatic predisposing factors.