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PTSD and Somatization in Women Treated at a VA Primary Care Clinic

Received Sept. 25, 2002; revision received Aug. 4, 2003; accepted Aug. 15, 2003. From the New Mexico VA Health Care System; and the Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Community Medicine, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque. Address reprint requests to Dr. Escalona, VA Medical Center, 116A, 1501 San Pedro Dr. S.E., Albuquerque, NM 87108; pescalona{at}salud.unm.edu (e-mail).

The authors examined the association between trauma, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and somatization in 264 women attending a Department of Veterans Affairs primary care clinic. Using a structured computerized interview (Composite International Diagnostic Interview), they found that traumatic events were reported by 81% of the women. The lifetime prevalence of PTSD was 27%; for somatization it was 19%. PTSD was the best predictor of somatization after control for demographic variables, veteran status, and other mood and anxiety disorders. Psychological numbing symptoms of PTSD emerged as a particularly strong predictor of somatization. The link between PTSD and somatization deserves further study.

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