The Response to Treatment in Hypochondriacal Disorders

Abstract

Response to treatment has been studied in a group of 147 hypochondriacal patients. A variety of social and clinical variables were found to be related to outcome. Anxiety and depression correlated with a good prognosis, whilst poor outcome was related to other variables, from which two sex-related clinical pictures emerge. These consist of older men who are resentful, particularly resistant to reassurance and non-responsive to E.C.T., and females who are younger, have hysterical personalities and see a variety of non-psychiatric consultants before finally being referred to a psychiatric service.