Psychological treatment in the Somatization disorder: effectiveness and intervention proposals

Abstract

This review analyze randomized controlled studies carried out both in somatization disorder and in undifferentiated somatoform disorder patients that had been treated using two kind of interventions: 1. A consultation letter referred by a mental health specialist to the patient's family doctor and 2. Using cognitive-behaviour therapy. In these studies some variables such as the setting, the content, the number of sessions, the outcome, the foUow-up, etc. has been assessed. We summarize the main conclusions on psychological interventions developed up to the moment in these patients and we propose new stepped cognitive-behavioural therapies to implement in the future in somatization disorder patients.