The criterion validity of the Diagnostic Criteria for Psychosomatic Research in patients with morbid obesity

Introduction: Previous research has proved the criterion validity of the Diagnostic Criteria for Psychosomatic Research (DCPR) in several medical settings and cultures. Higher number of DCPR diagnoses has been associated with lower psychological well-being in patients with dermatological diseases and in women with breast cancer. This study extends the knowledge about DCPR criterion validity by exploring the relationships of DCPR diagnoses with PWB in patients with morbid obesity. Methods: 39 outpatients with morbid obesity and 36 subjects from general population participated in the study. Participants completed the Structured Interview for DCPR, and Ryff's questionnaire. Outpatients were also assessed via a structured interview exploring current mental disorders according to the International Classification of Diseases 10th edition (ICD-10). Results: a higher percentage of patients met the DCPR criteria for Health Anxiety or Demoralization than subjects of general population. Kruskal-Wallis test showed that patients with more than two DCPR diagnoses had lower scores on PWB. All patients with an ICD-10 diagnosis also met criteria for at least one DCPR diagnosis, while 56.4% of the patients had at least one DCPR diagnosis even though they had no ICD-10 mental disorder. Conclusions: findings in this study suggest that Health Anxiety or Demoralization diagnoses are related to morbid obesity. Higher number of DCPR diagnoses were associated with lower levels of PWB in patients with morbid obesity, supporting the criterion validity of the DCPR in this population. Moreover, the DCPR is able to capture clinical phenomena which are not individuated in the current nosological classifications.