Citation

Handa M, Nukina H, Ando K, Kubo C. Jpn. J. Psychosom. Med. 2004; 44(5): 355-359.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, Nippon Shinshin Igakkai)

DOI

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PMID

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Abstract

Lately the reports on abuse and domestic violence have been increasing. Many outpatients who visit the departments of Psychosomatic Medicine have symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. Not a few of them who are persistently ill have been abused. The onset and persistence of psychosomatic diseases seem to be partly correlated with history of physical abuse. We examined the relationship between childhood physical abuse and anxiety and/or depression in new 564 outpatients of the Department of Psychosomatic Medicine of Kyushu University Hospital. In this study, we used STAI- I (state anxiety), STAI- II (trait anxiety) and SDS (Zung's Self-rating Depression Scale) on psychological assessment scores. We divided the patients into two groups : the physical abused group and the non-abused group. We compared these psychological scores and a prevalence rate of self-injury behavior and drive between the two groups. Childhood physical abuses were reported by patients with depressive disorders (12.7%), eating disorders (16.3%), pain disorders (10.8%), anxiety disorders (16.7%) and irritable bowel syndrome (12.5%), functional dyspepsia (5.1%). In both the patients with depressive disorders and anxiety disorders, the scores of STAI- I and STAI- II were higher in the abused group than in the non-abused group (p < 0.05). The prevalence of self-injury behavior and drive was higher in those with depressive disorders, with pain disorders and with anxiety disorders of the abused group than in the non-abused group (p < 0.0001). The global psychosomatic studies on abuse including sexual abuse need to be further promoted in Japan.

Family violence; Child abuse, Domestic violence