Overview of somatization-diagnosis and management

Neurologists and general practitioners frequently encounter patients with inexplicable, unintentionally produced somatic complaints otherwise known as somatoform disorders.

A literature search was performed including MEDLINE, as well as local and intemrnational journals using the following keywords/ phrases and crossreferencing: somatoform disorder, somatization, medically unexplained physical symptoms.

Illness with excessive somatic preoccupation is difficult to diagnose or categorize reliably due to rigid diagnostic criteria that often overlap with several psychiatric disorders.

Management of patients with dysfunctional somatoform disorders is complex and challenging, particularly when initiated in a neurology outpatient or inpatient setting. The acronym CARE-MD represents a comprehensive treatment regimen that can be used to decrease physician and patient frustration, dramatically minimise health care over utilization, and improve overall well-being for patients with somatoform disorders.