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Globus sensation and psychopathology in men: the Vietnam experience study

Globus sensation and psychopathology in men: the Vietnam experience study
Globus sensation and psychopathology in men: the Vietnam experience study
Objective: to assess whether globus is associated with psychopathology in men. Globus—a persistent sensation of having a lump in the throat with no detectable physical cause—has long been thought a predominantly female disorder. Several small studies, based wholly or largely on women, suggested that globus is associated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, and somatic concern.
Methods: participants were 4240 male U.S. veterans who underwent detailed medical and psychological examinations in middle age. Psychological health was assessed by structured diagnostic interview and the clinical scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). The MMPI includes an item on the presence of globus.
Results: the prevalence of globus was 6.4%. Men with globus had an increased risk of being diagnosed with somatization disorder, odds ratio (OR) = 5.92, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 3.22, 10.9l; major depression, OR = 4.98, 95% CI = 3.63, 6.67; generalized anxiety disorder, OR = 3.70, 95% CI = 2.75, 4.90; posttraumatic stress disorder, OR = 3.50, 95% CI = 2.54, 4.76; and drug abuse or dependence, OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.15, 3.13; and they scored significantly higher on nine of the ten MMPI clinical scales. Globus was also associated with lower cognitive ability, socioeconomic and educational disadvantage, a higher pulse rate, and increased likelihood of being on antihypertensive medication.
Conclusions: globus is linked with a wide range of psychopathology in men, notably depression and somatization disorder. Men presenting with globus might have developed that particular symptom to "represent" other, related and treatable psychopathology, which should also be investigated
globus sensation, depression, somatization
0033-3174
1026-1031
Gale, Catharine R.
5bb2abb3-7b53-42d6-8aa7-817e193140c8
Wilson, Janet A.
a16d7a0a-0263-4758-88d4-5fe60c373e2d
Deary, Ian J.
027158ae-fbfb-40ea-98b1-32d2690499ac
Gale, Catharine R.
5bb2abb3-7b53-42d6-8aa7-817e193140c8
Wilson, Janet A.
a16d7a0a-0263-4758-88d4-5fe60c373e2d
Deary, Ian J.
027158ae-fbfb-40ea-98b1-32d2690499ac

Gale, Catharine R., Wilson, Janet A. and Deary, Ian J. (2009) Globus sensation and psychopathology in men: the Vietnam experience study. Psychosomatic Medicine, 71 (9), 1026-1031. (doi:10.1097/PSY.0b013e3181bc7739).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Objective: to assess whether globus is associated with psychopathology in men. Globus—a persistent sensation of having a lump in the throat with no detectable physical cause—has long been thought a predominantly female disorder. Several small studies, based wholly or largely on women, suggested that globus is associated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, and somatic concern.
Methods: participants were 4240 male U.S. veterans who underwent detailed medical and psychological examinations in middle age. Psychological health was assessed by structured diagnostic interview and the clinical scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI). The MMPI includes an item on the presence of globus.
Results: the prevalence of globus was 6.4%. Men with globus had an increased risk of being diagnosed with somatization disorder, odds ratio (OR) = 5.92, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 3.22, 10.9l; major depression, OR = 4.98, 95% CI = 3.63, 6.67; generalized anxiety disorder, OR = 3.70, 95% CI = 2.75, 4.90; posttraumatic stress disorder, OR = 3.50, 95% CI = 2.54, 4.76; and drug abuse or dependence, OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.15, 3.13; and they scored significantly higher on nine of the ten MMPI clinical scales. Globus was also associated with lower cognitive ability, socioeconomic and educational disadvantage, a higher pulse rate, and increased likelihood of being on antihypertensive medication.
Conclusions: globus is linked with a wide range of psychopathology in men, notably depression and somatization disorder. Men presenting with globus might have developed that particular symptom to "represent" other, related and treatable psychopathology, which should also be investigated

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More information

Published date: November 2009
Keywords: globus sensation, depression, somatization

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 71772
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/71772
ISSN: 0033-3174
PURE UUID: 980faed5-9997-4d23-89ba-78e28711c4d4
ORCID for Catharine R. Gale: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-3361-8638

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Date deposited: 04 Jan 2010
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 02:38

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Author: Janet A. Wilson
Author: Ian J. Deary

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