The prevalence of medically unexplained symptoms in primary care.

Objective There is only a small number of studies dealing with the prevalence of medically unexplained symptoms and somatoform disorder in German primary care practices. Therefore, we aimed to study the prevalence of medically unexplained symptoms and the prevalences and comorbidities of somatoform and other mental disorders. Method In the initial stage of a two-stage prevalence study, 620 consecutive patients were first screened with a PHQ-15 questionnaire. In the second stage, 308 selected persons were then interviewed in detail. Results Medically unexplained symptoms made up two-thirds of all reported symptoms with women, younger persons, and non-native speakers having the highest rates.…