Biomedical subjects

Karl J Looper

Publications and source records attributed to Karl J Looper.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Abnormal illness behaviour: physiological, psychological and social dimensions of coping with distress.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Pilowsky introduced the term 'abnormal illness behaviour' to characterize syndromes of excessive or inadequate response to symptoms, including hypochondriasis, somatization, and denial of illness. This review summarizes recent work from sociology, health psychology and psychiatry that contributes to an understanding of the processes that may underlie abnormal illness behaviour. RECENT FINDINGS: Disturbances in the regulation of physiological systems may account for many 'unexplained' symptoms and sickness behaviour. Increased attention to bodily sensations, sensitivity to pain and catastrophizing play important roles in illness behaviour in medical illness. Developmental adversities and parental modelling of illness behaviour in childhood may increase bodily preoccupation and health care utilization. Apparent cross-national differences in illness behaviour may reflect differences in health care systems, but cultural models of illness and social stigma remain important determinants of illness denial and avoidance of mental health services. SUMMARY: Research into illness behaviour is relevant to efforts to rethink the psychiatric nosology of somatoform disorders. The discrete somatoform disorders might well be replaced by a dimensional framework that identifies specific pathological processes in cognition, perception and social behaviour that contribute to bodily distress, impaired coping, inappropriate use of health services, chronicity and disability.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed2004

Perceived stigma in functional somatic syndromes and comparable medical conditions.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if patients with functional somatic syndromes (FSS) perceive greater levels of stigma than patients with comparable medical conditions that have a clear medical pathology. METHODS: Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia (FM), or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) were compared to multiple sclerosis (MS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and inflammatory bowel disease (IBS), respectively. RESULTS: There were greater levels of perceived stigma in the combined group of FSS compared to the medical control group. When each FSS was compared to its matched control group, only CFS had a higher level of perceived stigma. These results remained when controlling for other variables relevant to stigma. CONCLUSIONS: The higher level of perceived stigma in CFS may be due to the ambiguity of its status as a medical condition. The absence of this effect in FM and IBS is consistent with a greater level of acceptance of these disorders as medical illnesses.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed2004

Explaining medically unexplained symptoms.

Patients with medically unexplained symptoms comprise from 15% to 30% of all primary care consultations. Physicians often assume that psychological factors account for these symptoms, but current theories of psychogenic causation, somatization, and somatic amplification cannot fully account for common unexplained symptoms. Psychophysiological and sociophysiological models provide plausible medical explanations for most common somatic symptoms. Psychological explanations are often not communicated effectively, do not address patient concerns, and may lead patients to reject treatment or referral because of potential stigma. Across cultures, many systems of medicine provide sociosomatic explanations linking problems in family and community with bodily distress. Most patients, therefore, have culturally based explanations available for their symptoms. When the bodily nature and cultural meaning of their suffering is validated, most patients will acknowledge that stress, social conditions, and emotions have an effect on their physical condition. This provides an entree to applying the symptom-focused strategies of behavioural medicine to address the psychosocial factors that contribute to chronicity and disability.

Culture↗

PubMed2002

Behavioral medicine approaches to somatoform disorders.

This article reviews the research evidence for the efficacy of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for somatoform disorders. Randomized controlled studies support the efficacy of individual CBT for the treatment of hypochondriasis, body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), and undifferentiated somatoform disorders including medically unexplained symptoms, chronic fatigue syndrome, and noncardiac chest pain, and group CBT for the treatment of BDD and somatization disorder. On the basis of this review of the existing research and a theoretical model of the processes involved in somatoform disorders, the authors offer suggestions for future research and effective treatment.

Behavioral Medicine↗