A comparative study to assess the somatizationdisorder symptoms in institutionalized and non institutionalized elderly population residing at Mangalore, Karnataka

Somatoform disorders represent a group of disorders characterized by physical symptoms suggesting a medical disorder. The somatoform disorders have long been ignored by geriatric psychiatry.

Main objective of this study is to compare the somatization disorder symptoms in institutionalized and non-institutionalized elderly population

Data were collected from 60 samples (30 from old age home and 30 from urban community). Purposive sampling technique is applied for the recruitment of subjects and a 13 item somatic symptom severity scale (standardized scale; Pfizer 1999) is used for data collection. Descriptive statistics is used to summarize the collected information.

Results of this study show that non-institutionalized elderly has expressed their problems comfortably as compared to institutionalized elderly; hence the complaints are more among them.

It was found that non-institutionalized elderly has expressed their problems comfortably as compared to institutionalized elderly; hence the complaints are more among them. The study is suggestive of the need for identifying and treating somatoform disorder in elderly population