Mental disorders in patients with chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS)

Abstract Objective Chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) is a debilitating pain condition with prevalence rates between 2.0% and 26.6%. Studies indicate that CPPS is often associated with psychosocial factors, but little is known about the presence of full–blown mental disorders in female and male patients with CPPS. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the frequencies of mental disorders in patients with CPPS. Methods Cross-sectional data were collected from patients visiting a specialized outpatient clinic. Frequencies of mental disorders were investigated using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders (SCID-I) and compared to the general population. Furthermore, self-rating questionnaires were used to assess somatic symptom severity (PHQ-15), depression severity (PHQ-9) and anxiety severity (GAD-7). Results Data from 178 CPPS patients (60.1% female; age M = 49.1, SD = 18.0) were analyzed. Of the total sample, 95.2% (95% CI 90.8–97.9) suffered from at least one mental disorder. The most prevalent mental disorders were somatoform disorders (91.7%; 95% CI 86.4–95.4), followed by mood disorders (50.6%; 95% CI 42.8–58.4) and anxiety disorders (32.1%; 95% CI 25.2–39.8). The self-reported symptom burden was also significantly higher than in the general population. Compared to men, women met the diagnoses of somatoform ( p  = 0.012) and anxiety disorders ( p  = 0.027) significantly more often and reported a significantly higher total somatic symptom severity ( p  = 0.001). Conclusion Our results provide evidence for a clinically relevant psychosocial symptom burden in patients with CPPS, indicating the need for the examination of psychopathologies and multi-professional treatment for this patient group.