Abstract
SummaryMany reports have been published concerning how psychosocial stress influences the occurrence and progression of allergic diseases such as bronchial asthma and atopic dermatitis. As for asthma, a typical allergic disease often accompanied by psychosomatic related problems, the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), international medical guidelines for asthma, describes psychosocial problems as causative factors of poor asthma control and as risk factors for asthma exacerbation, even if symptoms are well controlled. However, because there is little high quality evidence for effective treatments for asthma patients with psychosocial problems, concrete assessments and treatments for such problems is scarcely described in GINA. Therefore, psychosomatic intervention for asthma patients is not effectively conducted on a worldwide scale. In contrast, the “Japanese Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Psychosomatic Diseases” describe the assessment and treatment of psychosomatic disorders in detail. In the guidelines, psychosocial factors are classified into five categories; 1) Relation between stress and asthma occurrence or progression, 2) Relation between emotion and asthma symptoms, 3) Problems related to a patient’s character and behaviors, 4) Problems of daily life and Quality of Life (QOL), and 5) Problems related to family relationships and life history. The employment of a self-administered questionnaire, the “Psychosomatic Questionnaire related to Asthmatic Occurrence and Progression”, is useful for clarifying psychosocial factors and for setting up treatment strategies according to the problems identified. The Japanese guidelines have been proven to be useful, but empirical evidence for their effectiveness is still relatively limited. It will be necessary in the future to accumulate high-quality evidence and to revise the psychosomatic approaches in the guidelines that are universally valid.
Highlights
Psychosocial stress affects the nervous, endocrine, and immunological systems, which are involved in the onset and exacerbation of various diseases
Many studies have reported psychosocial influences on the onset and progression of allergic diseases such as bronchial asthma and atopic dermatitis [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11] with psychosomatic pathology, which is defined as “pathophysiological states of somatic disorders that have been closely affected by psychosocial factors in their occurrence and progression and in which organic and/or dysfunctional lesions are found” [12]
Concerning asthma, a typical allergic disease often accompanied by psychosomatic problems, some “preparation factors” are inherent to the pathogenesis, such as atopic disposition and airway hyperresponsiveness, while others are acquired preclinical factors
Summary
Psychosocial stress affects the nervous, endocrine, and immunological systems, which are involved in the onset and exacerbation of various diseases. Manifested asthma may persist or worsen by various individual and environmental factors, including emotional states, personal characteristics, and behavioral problems, as well as daily life problems caused by the disease. The “Japanese Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Psychosomatic Diseases” enable the physician to assess the psychosocial factors of asthma patients by use of a self-administered questionnaire designed for patients with asthma: the “Psychosomatic Questionnaire Related to Asthma Occurrence and Progression” [15,16].
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
