title: Dysmorphic concern symptoms and personality disorders: a clinical investigation in patients seeking cosmetic surgery.
abstract: Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is a somatoform disorder characterized by an excessive concern with an imagined or slight defect in appearance. BDD has been particularly studied in cosmetic surgery settings. The object of the present study is to investigate the relationship between personality disorders and dysmorphic symptoms in a group of 66 patients seeking cosmetic surgery. Assessment instruments included the following: a semistructured interview for demographic and clinical characteristics; the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV, the Hamilton Depression and Anxiety Rating Scales, and the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Yale - Brown Obsessive--Compulsive Scale (BDD - YBOCS). A multiple regression analysis was performed using the BDD - YBOCS score as a continuous dependent variable. The severity of dysmorphic symptoms (BDD - YBOCS score) was significantly related to two factors: the number of diagnostic criteria for schizotypal and paranoid personality disorders. The results suggest that the presence of a psychopathological reaction to imagined defects in appearance in subjects pursuing a surgical correction is associated with the severity of schizotypal and paranoid personality disorders. Preoperative assessment could help to define the clinical profile of patients in cosmetic surgery settings.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Psychiatry, Department of Neuroscience, University of Turin, Via Cherasco 11, 10126 Torino, Italy. silvio.bellino@unito.it
authors.forename: Silvio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bellino
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zizza
authors.forename: Erika
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Paradiso
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rivarossa
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fulcheri
authors.forename: Filippo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bogetto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015897:Comorbidity; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010260:Paranoid Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D018579:Patient Selection; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012569:Schizotypal Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology