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Personality disorders in problematic medical patients
J Emerson1, L Pankratz, S Joos
1Portland VA Medical Center, Psychology Service, OR.
Psychosomatics
|September 1, 1994
Summary
Many patients in behavioral medicine clinics have personality disorders. These diagnoses frequently co-occur with somatoform disorders, impacting patient care and requiring medical provider awareness.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Behavioral Medicine
Background:
- Problematic medical patients often present complex diagnostic challenges.
- Understanding psychiatric comorbidities is crucial for effective behavioral medicine treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine psychiatric diagnoses in patients referred to a behavioral medicine clinic.
- To investigate the comorbidity between Axis I and Axis II diagnoses, specifically somatoform and personality disorders.
Main Methods:
- Reviewed psychiatric diagnoses of 448 patients referred to a behavioral medicine clinic.
- Analyzed the co-occurrence of Axis I (e.g., somatoform) and Axis II (personality) disorders using DSM-III-R criteria.
Main Results:
- 42% of patients met DSM-III-R personality disorder criteria.
- A statistically significant co-occurrence was found between somatoform and personality disorders (P < 0.0001).
Conclusions:
- Personality disorders are prevalent in behavioral medicine settings.
- The significant comorbidity highlights the importance of recognizing personality disorders for medical providers treating patients with somatoform conditions.