DYSMORPHIC CONCERN - PREVALENCE AND ASSOCIATIONS WITH CLINICAL-VARIABLES

Objective: The aim of this paper is to describe the development of a q uestionnaire, the Dysmorphic Concern Questionnaire (DCQ), for the asse ssment of dysmorphic concern, and to establish correlations with clini cal variables. Method: Consecutive admissions to a psychiatric hospita l were surveyed. Results: The DCQ showed good internal consistency, wi th most of the variance being explained by a single factor. Strong cor relations with distress and work and social impairment lend face valid ity to the questionnaire. Dysmorphic concern was not significantly inf luenced by the patient's age, sex or diagnosis. In terms of specific p sychotic symptoms, there were weak positive correlations with thought interference and persecutory ideation. However, the strongest correlat ions were with depressed mood, according to the Beck Depression Invent ory (BDI) but not the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale; the d iscrepancy was largely accounted for by the 'cognitive' depressive ite ms on the BDI. In terms of objective assess ment of dysmorphic feature s, ratings on the Waldrop scale for minor physical anomalies showed no correlation with concern expressed by the patient. Conclusions: The s trong correlation with depressive cognitions suggests that dysmorphic concern is often a reflection of a depressive cognitive set rather tha n being a diagnosis in itself.