Psychodermatology is an underappreciated field that studies psychocutaneous disorders, which are conditions that have both dermatologic and psychiatric characteristics. Underlying psychiatric comorbidity is estimated to occur in up to one-third of dermatologic patients, and psychiatric illness may either be the cause or the consequence of dermatologic disease. Psychodermatologic patients lack insight and often do not recognize a psychiatric etiology for their symptoms and therefore comprise some of the most challenging cases to treat. Herein, we discuss the background and clinical presentation of the most commonly encountered psychodermatologic conditions, including delusional infestation, neurotic excoriations, factitial dermatitis, trichotillomania and body dysmorphic disorder, followed by practical diagnostic and therapeutic recommendations.

Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome represent two of the most commonly encountered functional somatic syndromes in clinical practice. Both have been contentious diagnoses in the past, and this diagnostic dispute has resulted in a therapeutic nihilism that has been of great detriment to their management and to alleviation of the intense suffering and disability that they have caused their innumerable sufferers. A new age has dawned in terms of a better understanding of these syndromes' physiology and improved approaches to their management. Here, the diagnosis and management of these closely related disorders are discussed, with particular reference to the recent empirical evidence that has come to light as a consequence of neurophysiological insights and robustly designed randomised clinical trials. Much work remains to be done in this vein, but we are better placed to facilitate recovery from these disorders than we have been previously. Whilst remission should always be a goal, complete symptom resolution is not the norm, but 'moderate' improvements are certainly attainable with appropriate management.

Communication is the corner stone of the relationship with the patient in all medical settings with the main aims of creating a good inter-personal relationship, exchanging information, and making treatment-related decisions. In a rapidly changing cultural and social context, the paternalistic approach of doctors knowing the best and deciding what should be done for a patient has been replaced by a shared decision-making approach, with patients being advised to educate themselves, ask questions and influence the course of the discussion with their doctors. Thus, a need for an improvement in the communication skills of physicians is extremely important for patients affected by serious physical illness (e.g. cancer, HIV infection, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis). Certain attitudes, behaviour and skills (e.g. capacity to impart confidence, being empathetic, providing a 'human touch', relating on a personal level, being forthright, being respectful, and being thorough) are part of effective communication. However, some specific aspects influencing doctor-patient communication and relationships, such as personality variables, coping and attachment styles, as well as cultural factors, should also be taken in to account. The development of training curricula to help doctors acquire proper skills in communication is mandatory, since research has shown that training in communication may facilitate the effectiveness of a doctor-patient relationship and the patient's satisfaction with care and give a general sense of humanity, which is easily lost in a biotechnologically oriented medicine.

Telomeres are structures of tandem TTAGGG repeats that are found at the ends of chromosomes and preserve genomic DNA by serving as a disposable buffer to protect DNA termini during chromosome replication. In this process, the telomere itself shortens with each cell division and can consequently be thought of as a cellular 'clock', reflecting the age of a cell and the time until senescence. Telomere shortening and changes in the levels of telomerase, the enzyme that maintains telomeres, occur in the context of certain somatic diseases and in response to selected physical stressors. Emerging evidence indicates that telomeres shorten with exposure to psychosocial stress (including early-life stress) and perhaps in association with some psychiatric disorders. These discoveries suggest that telomere shortening might be a useful biomarker for the overall stress response of an organism to various pathogenic conditions. In this regard, telomeres and their response to both somatic and psychiatric illness could serve as a unifying stress-response biomarker that crosses the brain/body distinction that is often made in medicine. Prospective studies will help to clarify whether this biomarker has broad utility in psychiatry and medicine for the evaluation of responses to psychosocial stressors. The possibility that telomere shortening can be slowed or reversed by psychiatric and psychosocial interventions could represent an opportunity for developing novel preventative and therapeutic approaches.