Somatoform Disorders - Cross-Examining Psych Doctors, Tip #84

            The Somatoform Disorders are characterized by the presence of physical signs and/or symptoms that suggest that the individual has a general medical condition accounting for the signs and/or symptoms but those signs and/or symptoms cannot be fully explained by a general medical condition, the direct effects of a substance or another mental disorder.  Essentially, the person presents with medically unexplained physical signs and/or symptoms and there is reason to suspect that their complaints are due to psychological factors or variables and that the individual is not faking or Malingering (V65.2).  The most frequently diagnosed Somatoform Disorders are:  a Somatization Disorder, an Undifferentiated Somatoform Disorder, a Conversion Disorder, Pain Disorders, and Hypochondriasis.  It is important that the doctor diagnosing a Somatoform Disorder explicitly state what evidence they have, in the form of medical records and/or the patient’s clinical presentation at their examination, that indicates that psychological factors or variables are producing the patients symptoms or complaints.  In situations where the doctor has not provided such information in their report, you should ask the doctor, “Where in your report did you cited medical records from such professionals as orthopedists, chiropractors, neurologists and/or physical therapists who stated that not all of the patient’s complaints of pain are completely understandable as being the result of underlying physical pathology?”