Somatic Symptoms and Related Disorders

Question 1

Conversion Disorder

Answer 1

Physical symptoms suggesting neurological problems: Sensory impairment: Any modality or Paresthesias and paralysis
Sudden onset, sudden termination, sudden reappearance
Mostly women; men in combat

Question 2

Somatoform Disorder NOS (DSM IV)

Answer 2

Pseudocyesis (False Pregnancy)

Hypochondriacal symptoms

Question 3

Etiology of somatoform disorders: Psychoanalytic theory

Answer 3

Controlling repressed sexual urges
Displaced anxiety or secondary gain
Sackeim: Deny knowledge but use information

Question 4

Etiology of somatoform disorders: Behavior theory

Answer 4

Malingering
Social learning and reinforcement
Secondary gain

Question 5

Etiology of somatoform disorders: Biological factors

Answer 5

One sign (objective indicator) of anxiety is an increased level of cortisol, a stress hormone. Cortisol levels are elevated in patients with somatization disorder.
But there is no concordance in twin studies for any somatoform disorder.
The right hemisphere may be implicated in conversion disorder