Medically Unexplained Symptoms: A Systematic Umbrella Review of Current Terminology and Reported Rationales.

Area of Science:

• Medical Terminology
• Systematic Review
• Interdisciplinary Communication

Background:

• Medically Unexplained Symptoms (MUS) present diagnostic and management challenges.
• Inconsistent terminology hinders effective communication and patient care.
• Existing naming conventions lack standardization across medical fields.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review current naming conventions for Medically Unexplained Symptoms (MUS).
• To analyze the terminology used and rationales provided in existing reviews.
• To identify inconsistencies and propose pathways toward universal language.

Main Methods:

• A systematic umbrella review was conducted, searching eight databases.
• Included reviews (N=422) used terms related to medically unexplained symptoms or synonyms.
• Content analysis and risk-of-bias assessment were performed on a subset of reviews.

Main Results:

• Over 111 terms were identified, with
• functional
• somatic
• medically unexplained
• being most common.
• Significant variability in terminology was observed, even within related disciplines.
• Rationales for term selection often focused on interdisciplinary differences, patient perspective, or common usage.

Conclusions:

• The current terminology for Medically Unexplained Symptoms (MUS) is varied, nuanced, and inconsistent.
• Developing universally accepted language is crucial for improved diagnosis, management, and treatment.
• Enhanced interdisciplinary and patient-practitioner communication is needed.