Hypochondriasis

Hypochondria ( gr ὑποχόνδρια: area under the ribs ) is the one according to the international classification system ICD -10 a mental disorder ( somatoform disorder ), in which the patient suffers from marked anxiety to have a serious condition, without that for a reasonable, can find objective findings. Secondly, hypochondria is a symptom that may occur in the context of numerous mental disorders.

Word origin

The original word creation was made by Galen: The term is related to the Greek χόνδρος ( " chondros " for cartilage). This refers to the rib cartilage, under ( ὑπό "hypo " ) which is then suspected the origin of mood disorders. It was assumed that the spleen was responsible for this kind of pain. ( " Milzsucht ").

Everyday use of the term

In everyday parlance, the term hypochondria is not clearly defined and used generally describes a relationship dominated by fear for his own body and its functions, as well as a fear of disease. As a hypochondriac - often disparagingly in the vernacular - worried about their health people called who are paying more to changes in body functions and interpret minor body signals as a possible expression of serious diseases.

Excessive introspection can lead to misperceptions and frequent doctor visits also in psychologically normal people, which also detailed and repeated examinations found no physical cause for the symptoms. The easily accessible ways to inquire about Internet portals to disease symptoms, leading to new forms of the disease fear, such as the Cyberchondrie.

The term hypochondria has negative connotations in general usage and hypochondriac is also used as a derogatory term sniveling people. We speak unprofessionally by an imaginary disease (see Moliere, The Imaginary Invalid ), as if people with anxiety disease generally "nothing" would have. This is particularly problematic in terms of of real, clinical hypochondria sufferers, as these people are not self-pitying, but difficult psychiatrically ill.

Medical definition

Unlike in ordinary language, hypochondriasis in medical terms is clearly defined. The corresponding disease was formerly known as hypochondria, but is now defined according to the " International Classification of Diseases " (ICD -10 ) under " F45.2 " as hypochondriacal disorder. And Illness Anxiety Disorder (German: Disease Anxiety Disorder ): In the American classification system DSM -5, which has 2013 valid since May, hypochondriacal disorder by the diagnoses Somatic Symptom Disorder (body symptom disorder dt ) was replaced to reflect the fact that there are two sometimes occurring independently pages hypochondriacal symptoms, including medically unexplained symptoms ( somatoform Kompenente ) and illness anxiety (anxiety component).

It has been estimated that every 20th patient suffers from symptoms that can not be medically explained in severity of impairment. The prevalence of hypochondriasis in the sense of a real clinical disorder is, however, much lower, and it can also lead to severe cases with overvalued ideas and delusions hypochondriac. Typically, the affected many medical studies have already passed and frequently change doctors ( "Doctor hopping " or "Doctor shopping" called ).

Characteristic of the hypochondriacal disorder according to ICD -10 is the fact that the patient is afraid to suffer from a particular disease ( eg cancer). The complaints of physical symptoms is not a priority. Depending on the intensity of the symptoms the person more or less by the doctor is überzeugbar that his fears are unfounded. This is possible more severe the symptoms, the less. For treatment are psychotherapy and the use of certain psychotropic drugs promising.

With sustained expression Hypochondria is a serious disorder that can be both for those affected and for their environment agonizing. According to the results of a large WHO study ( Gureje et al., See literature) Germany ranks among the world leaders for high illness anxiety. The disease occurs in men and women about equally common.

In Anglo-Saxon academia is hypochondria or certain forms of the disease, contrary to the usual classification as a somatoform disorder, the so-called "forced spectrum" associated (English: "OCD Spectrum Disorders "). This particular when not observing body signals is important, but to suffer the obsessive fear. Often come in this form also so typical of obsessive-compulsive disorder doubt the validity of such on the expertise of the doctor or to have this understood correctly. However, the classification of certain hypochondriacal symptom pictures in the spectrum of obsessive-compulsive disorder is more of academic interest, since both diseases with the same form of behavior therapy and the same medications (especially SSRIs) can be treated.

Subgroups

Specific forms of monosymptomatic hypochondriasis are:

• Bromosis (from the Latin bromus " stench " ) notion that one would give off a foul odor
• Parasitosis: idea that one would be infested with parasites (especially worms or spiders) that grow in the body, especially when growing under the skin parasites of the so-called delusional parasitosis
• Dysmorphophobia: idea that one is misshapen, disfigured or generally repulsive ugly

Differential Diagnosis

Since other mental illnesses can have symptoms that are very similar to the classic hypochondria, the diagnosis of an independent hypochondriacal disorder should be made only after extensive differential diagnosis. The demarcation to the other somatoform disorders is important. Before the diagnosis of hypochondriasis must therefore be refused if there are no other faults that explain better or whether conditions have developed the symptoms. Hypochondria as a symptom can, among other things occur within the following mental illnesses:

• Depression
• Delusional disorder
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Anxiety Disorder

History

Sigmund Freud reckoned hypochondria together with neurasthenia and anxiety neurosis to the actual neuroses.