Conversion disorders in Nottingham: alive, but not kicking.
A postal request to general practitioners in a catchment area (population 37,000) identified 18 patients fulfilling criteria for conversion disorder (age range 26-74 years; mean age of onset of first episode 38 years). There was a female preponderance, with two patients from ethnic minority groups. There was a temporal correlation with stress in 13 cases (72%) and a history of sexual abuse in 5 cases (28%). Three clinical groups were identified: acute onset with good premorbid functioning and full recovery; conversion symptoms as part of polysymptomatic presentation, with fluctuating course; and chronic, severely disturbed individuals with a past history of sexual abuse. One third of cases were referred to psychiatrists. There was no case of a missed organic disorder. The details of one case are discussed.
Singh
S P
SP
Department of Psychiatry, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK. swaran.singh@nottingham.ac.uk
Lee
A S
AS
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D019090:Case Management; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000523:psychology; D015897:Comorbidity; D003291:Conversion Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications; D016896:Treatment Outcome