HP CHO -9 October 2022
Psychiatric Nursing
Easy
Preoccupation with body diseases is seen in:
Appeared in: HP CHO -9 October 2022
Explanation
- Hypochondriasis, now largely classified as Illness Anxiety Disorder, is defined by a persistent preoccupation with having or acquiring a serious illness.
- The core feature is intense anxiety about one's health, which persists even when somatic (physical) symptoms are mild or entirely absent.
- The individual's fear of having a disease is excessive and disproportionate to their actual health status, and medical reassurance does not alleviate the concern.
- The focus is on the idea of being sick, which directly matches the question's phrasing of "preoccupation with body diseases.".
Why Other Options Were Wrong
- Option A: Obsessions are recurrent, intrusive thoughts or urges, but they are not exclusively about health or diseases. This is a broader symptom seen in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), with common themes like contamination, symmetry, or safety.
- Option B: Somatization (or Somatic Symptom Disorder) involves a primary focus on the distress caused by one or more significant physical symptoms, such as pain or fatigue, rather than the fear of a specific underlying disease.
- Option D: Conversion Disorder is characterized by symptoms affecting voluntary motor or sensory function (e.g., paralysis, blindness, non-epileptic seizures) that are incompatible with a recognized neurological or medical condition. The focus is on a loss of function, not a preoccupation with disease.
Related Visual
Clinical Relevance
- Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Differentiating Somatoform and Anxiety-Related Disorders as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
- Nurses should build a therapeutic, trusting relationship with patients exhibiting illness anxiety, acknowledging their distress without reinforcing the sick role.
- The care plan should focus on managing anxiety through coping strategies, stress reduction, and scheduled, time-limited appointments, rather than ordering repetitive and unnecessary diagnostic tests.
- It is crucial to avoid being dismissive, as this can damage the therapeutic alliance and cause the patient to seek care elsewhere, perpetuating the cycle of anxiety and testing.
How to Approach the Question
- First, identify the key phrase in the question stem: "preoccupation with body diseases."
- Next, analyze the core concept of each option. Think about the primary focus of each disorder.
- Evaluate 'Obsession': This is about intrusive thoughts in general, not specifically disease preoccupation.
- Evaluate 'Somatization': This is about distress from physical symptoms.
- Evaluate 'Conversion disorder': This is about a loss of neurological function.
- Evaluate 'Hypochondriasis': This is defined as a preoccupation with the fear of disease itself.
Concept Tested & Keywords
- Concept Tested: Differentiating Somatoform and Anxiety-Related Disorders
- Stem keywords: preoccupation, body diseases
- Lead-in keywords: seen in
Question ID
Q9Ju_hDw5c18cBxFqW9ySl
Reference Book
E6 Medicine Davidson Principles Practice 24e p. 1222-1224
E6 Kaplan Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry-2022 (pp 1-3768 of 3768) p. 1441-1443
E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) p. 8106-8108
Practise the full HP CHO -9 October 2022
Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.
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