Patients with medically unexplained symptoms: DSM-III diagnoses and demographic characteristics

This study reports DSM-III diagnoses and demographic characteristics of 100 patients consecutively referred to a university hospital consultation-liaison service for evaluation of medically unexplained symptoms suggesting physical disorders. Thirty-seven percent of patients received diagnoses of somatoform, dissociative, or factitious disorders, and 14% were felt to have psychologic factors affecting physical conditions. Although black and male patients were less often referred for medically unexplained symptoms, once referred they were more likely than white and female patients to receive diagnoses of somatoform, dissociative, or factitious disorders. Among patients with somatoform disorders, those with conversion disorder and somatization disorder tended to be young women, whereas those with psychogenic pain disorder were older and equally likely to be male or female.