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Personality Disorders in Patients with Somatisation Disorder

A Controlled Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Julian Stern ,
Michael Murphy  and
Christopher Bass
Julian Stern
Affiliation:
Maudsley Hospital, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AZ
Michael Murphy
Affiliation:
Queen Mary's University Hospital, Roehampton Lane, London SW15 5PN
Christopher Bass*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Medicine, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU
*
∗Correspondence
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Abstract

Twenty-five women with somatisation disorder (SD) were compared with matched patient controls for the presence of personality disorders. Personality was assessed with the Personality Assessment Schedule (PAS). Interviewers were unaware of the patients' diagnoses. All controls had DSM–III–R axis I diagnoses of depressive or anxiety disorders. The prevalence of personality disorders among patients with somatisation disorder was 72% compared with 36% among controls. Certain personality disorders, including passive–dependent, histrionic, and sensitive–aggressive, occurred significantly more often in the SD patients than controls.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 163 , Issue 6 , December 1993 , pp. 785 - 789
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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