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Multicenter Study
. 2010 Sep 15:11:67.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2296-11-67.

Patients presenting with somatic complaints in general practice: depression, anxiety and somatoform disorders are frequent and associated with psychosocial stressors

Nader Haftgoli  1 , Bernard Favrat, François Verdon, Paul Vaucher, Thomas Bischoff, Bernard Burnand, Lilli Herzig
Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Patients presenting with somatic complaints in general practice: depression, anxiety and somatoform disorders are frequent and associated with psychosocial stressors

Nader Haftgoli et al. BMC Fam Pract. .

Abstract

Background: Mental disorders in primary care patients are frequently associated with physical complaints that can mask the disorder. There is insufficient knowledge concerning the role of anxiety, depression, and somatoform disorders in patients presenting with physical symptoms. Our primary objective was to determine the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and somatoform disorders among primary care patients with a physical complaint. We also investigated the relationship between cumulated psychosocial stressors and mental disorders.

Methods: We conducted a multicentre cross-sectional study in twenty-one private practices and in one academic primary care centre in Western Switzerland. Randomly selected patients presenting with a spontaneous physical complaint were asked to complete the self-administered Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) between November 2004 and July 2005. The validated French version of the PHQ allowed the diagnosis of mental disorders (DSM-IV criteria) and the analyses of exposure to psychosocial stressors.

Results: There were 917 patients exhibiting at least one physical symptom included. The rate of depression, anxiety, and somatoform disorders was 20.0% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 17.4% to 22.7%), 15.5% (95% CI = 13.2% to 18.0%), and 15.1% (95% CI = 12.8% to 17.5%), respectively. Psychosocial stressors were significantly associated with mental disorders. Patients with an accumulation of psychosocial stressors were more likely to present anxiety, depression, or somatoform disorders, with an increase of 2.2 fold (95% CI = 2.0 to 2.5) for each additional stressor.

Conclusions: The investigation of mental disorders and psychosocial stressors among patients with physical complaints is relevant in primary care. Psychosocial stressors should be explored as potential epidemiological causes of mental disorders.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow chart.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Overlapping of depression, anxiety, and somatoform disorder for patient with a physical complaint in primary care.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Odds of having depression, anxiety, or somatoform disorder for patients exposed to different psychosocial stressors.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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