Psychiatric patients presenting with primarily somatic symptoms: report of two cases

Two recent cases of psychiatric disorders, presenting primarily with physical symptoms are described, which suggest that both psychotic and psychoneurotic disorders can present with somatic symptoms for which no adequate physical cause could be defined. It is emphasised that such cases require specialist psychiatric evaluation and assessment for the appropriate management to be initiated. Recent studies have stressed the frequency with which psychiatric illness or psychological distress is presented in most African patients as somatic illness, especially in depressive illness, psychotic disorders and psychoneurotic disorders (1). Two such cases of different diagnoses are presented here.