psychiatric disorders
Somatic Symptom Disorder
Diagnosis of Somatic Symptom Disorder
Usually clinical criteria Symptoms must be distressing or disruptive of daily life for>6 months and be associated with at least one of the following: Disproportionate and persistent thoughts about the seriousness of the symptoms Persistently high anxiety about health or the symptoms Excessive time and energy spent on the symptoms or health concerns At first presentation, physicians take an extensive history (sometimes conferring with family members) and do a thorough examination and often testing to determine whether a physical disorder is the cause. Because patients with somatic symptom disorder may subsequently develop physical disorders, appropriate examinations and tests should also be done when symptoms change significantly or when objective signs develop. However, once a medical disorder has clearly been excluded or a mild disorder has been identified and treated, physicians should avoid repeating tests; patients are rarely reassured by negative test results and may interpret continued testing as confirmation that the physician is uncertain the diagnosis is benign. Because patients with somatic symptom disorder may subsequently develop concurrent physical disorders, appropriate examinations and tests should be done when symptoms change significantly or when objective signs develop. Illness Anxiety Disorder has similar manifestations except that physical symptoms are absent or minimal. Somatic symptom disorder is distinguished from 