The Cold man. A clinical case of the cold sensation.

Salvatore Settineri, Filippo Tatì, Carmela Mento

Abstract


The lack of correlation between available knowledge and the current approach to Somatoform Disorders is highlighted.. Methods: the study, via the analysis of an unusual clinical case of an anomalous sensation of cold, examines various hypotheses on the physiopathology of somatization. Conclusions: a conceptualization would focus attention on the level of patients’ preoccupation with their symptoms, on the anomalies of the variations of perceptions and on patients’ hyperarousal. It could lead to a more harmonious position in psychiatry, between anthropologically-based understanding and interpretation of psychophysical information.


Keywords


Cold sensation, Pain, Psychopathology

Full Text:

PDF

References


American Psychiatric Association (1994) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4° ed. (DSM IV). APA, Washington. D.C. Buchwarld D, Pearlman T, Kith P, Schmaling K. Gender difference in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome. J Gen Intern Med 1994 Jul; 9(7): 397-401. Argyle Michael “Il corpo ed il suo linguaggio” Zanichelli Bologna1992. Bayer TL, Coverdale JH, Chiang E, Bangs M. The role of prior pain experience and expectancy in psychologically and physically induced pain. Pain. 1998 Feb;74(2-3):327-31. Birket-Smith M, Mortensen EL. Pain in somatoform disorders: is Somatoform pain disorder a valid diagnosis? Acta Psichtr Scand 2002:106: 103-108. Bshor T., Masked depression: the rise and fall of a diagnosis. Psychiatr Prax. 2002 May; 29(4):207-10. German. PMID: 120221994. Buchwarld D, Pearlman T, Kith P, Schmaling K. Gender difference in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome. J Gen Intern Med 1994 Jul; 9(7): 397-401. Davis Karen D., Pope Geoffrey E.. Noxious cold evokes multiple sensations with distinct time courses. Pain 98 (2002) 179-185. Ehlers L. Pain and new cultural diseases. Endod Dent Traumatol 1999 Oct;15(5):193-7. Evengard B., Schacterle R.S. & Komaroff A.L., Chronic fatigue syndrome: new insights and old ignorance, Journal of Internetional Medicine Vol. 246 Issue 5 Page 455 –November 1999. Feldner MT, Hekmat H. Perceived control over anxiety-related events as a predictor of pain behaviors in a cold pressor task. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry 2001 Dec; 32(4):191-202 Ford CV. Somatization and fashionable diagnoses: illness as a way of life. : Scand J Work Environ Health 1997;23 Suppl 3:7-16. Gould R, Miller BL, Goldberg MA, Benson DF. The validity hsterical signs and symptoms. J Nerv Ment Dis 1986; 174: 593-597. Hammad MA, Barsky AJ, Regestein QR. Correlation between somatic sensation scores and hyperarousal scale scores. Psychosomatics 2001 Jan-Feb, 42(1): 29-34. Harrison Joel L.K, Davis Karen D.. Cold-evoked pain varies with skin type and cooling rate: a psychophisiological study in humans. Pain 83 (1999) 123-135. Leventhal EA, Hansell S, Diefenbach M, Leventhal H, Glass DC. Negative affect and self-report of physical symptoms: two longitudinal studies of older adults. : Health Psychol 1996 May;15(3):193-9. Nakao M, Barsky AJ, Kumano H, Kuboki T. Relationship between somatosensory amplification and alexithymia in a Japanese psychosomatic clinic. Psychosomatics 2002 Jan-Feb; 43 (1): 55-60. Nijenhuis ER, van Dyck R, ter Kuile MM, Mourits MJ, Spinhoven P, van der Hart O. Evidence for associations among somatoform dissociation, psychological dissociation and reported trauma in patients with chronic pelvic pain. J Psychosom Obstet Gynaecol. 2003 Jun; 24(2): 87-98. Renhard D. Beise, Carstens E., Kohlloffel Lothar U.E.. Psychophysical study of stinging pain evoked by brief freezing of superficial skin and ensuing short-lasting changes in sensations of cool and cold pain. Pain 74 (1998) 275-286. Rickels K, Rynn M. Overview and clinical presentation of generalized anxiety disorder. Psychiatr Clin North Am. 2001 Mar; 24(1): 1-17. Rief W, Auer C. Is Somatization a habituation disorder? Physiological reactivity in somatization syndrome. Psychiatry Research 101 (2001) 63-74. Rief W, Hiller W, Margraf J. Cognitive aspects of hypochondriasis and the somatization syndrome. J Abnorm Psychol 1998 Nov; 107(4): 587-95. Rief W., Hiller W., Toward empirically based criteria for somatoform disorders. Journal of Psychosomatic Research 46, 1999,507-518.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.6092/2282-1619/2013.2.922

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.