Pharmacoepidemiology of patients hospitalized for somatoform disorders in psychiatric hospitals and departments

Abstract

Pharmacological treatment is used in patients with somatoform disorders (SD) although the empirical evidence is scarce. We evaluated the current pharmacological treatment strategies used for psychiatric in-patients diagnosed with SD in Central Europe. Cross-sectional data of the pharmacological treatment, age, gender, and the primary psychiatric diagnosis of 70,566 in-patients were collected on 2 days in April and October of the years 1994-2006 in 57 psychiatric hospitals and departments. Three hundred fifty nine patients corresponding to 0.51% of the psychiatric in-patient population were hospitalized for SD. 94.7% of the SD patients received psychopharmacological treatment including antidepressants (78.2%), neuroleptics (43.3%), tranquilizers (22.6%), hypnotics (15.6%), and anticonvulsants (12.3%). 61.3% were treated with psychotropic combinations, most commonly antidepressant and neuroleptic (36.2%). In addition, 63.7% received one or multiple somatic medications. As compared to general medical and neurological in-patient populations, SD patients represent a small proportion of the psychiatric in-patient population. They commonly receive multiple psychotropic and somatic medications. The psychotropics used have predominantly sedating characteristics. SD patients are at risk of polypharmacy in psychiatry.