Medically unexplained chronic musculoskeletal pain and psychiatric morbidity in an Indian sample

Abstract

OBJECT: The psychiatric aspects of 30 patients suffering from chronic musculoskeletal pain in a Government hospital in Mumbai, India were investigated.METHOD: Twenty-three relatives matched for age and sex formed a control group. The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID-I) was used to determine the nature of the psychiatric morbidity. The role of stressful fife events was examined using the Presumptive Stressful Life Events Scale (PSLES).RESULTS: More than half the patients satisfied the criteria for a depressive disorder. The patients experienced a higher number of stressful life events than the control group. The patients were further categorized as ‘depressed’ or ‘non-depressed’, and their pain estimates compared by using the Smith's submaximum tourniquet technique. The depressed patients had experienced a higher number of stressful life events and higher pain estimates than the non-depressed patients.CONCLUSION: The results are discussed in relation to mental illness, life events and the experience of chronic pain.