Muhammad Nasar Sayeed Khan, Salman Ahmad, Nadia Arshad, Naeem Ullah, Nabila Maqsood.
Anxiety and depressive symptoms in patients with conversion disorder.
J Coll Physicians Surg Pak Jan ;15(8):489-92.

Objective: To determine symptom pattern of conversion disorder and its association with co-existent anxiety and depressive symptoms. Design: Descriptive, cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in the Department of Psychiatry, Services Hospital, Lahore from August 2003 to January 2004. Materials and Methods: One hundred patients, suffering from conversion disorder, diagnosed on the basis of DSM-IV criteria, were assessed for severity of anxiety and depressive symptoms by using hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS). A semi-structured interview was used for demographic details. Results: Anxiety was seen to be present in 35% of cases, depression in 29% and 31% of the patients had both anxiety and depressive symptoms. Overall co-morbidity of anxiety and depressive symptoms in conversion disorder was high i.e. 95% and only 5% of the patients were without any co-morbid anxiety and depressive symptoms. A significant association was found between depressive and sensory symptoms (p=<0.05) in patients with conversion disorders. Conclusion: The patients with a diagnosis of conversion disorder need to be managed for anxiety and depressive symptoms appropriately for better outcome.

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