PSYCHO-PHYSIOLOGICAL BASES OF THE MECHANISM OF ORIGIN OF HYPOCHANDRIC DISORDERS OF PERSONALITY

Abstract

The results of empirical study of the mechanism of origin of hypochondriacal personality disorders are presented in purpose to determine the peculiarities of their manifestation in persons with hypochondriacal symptoms and in groups studied without this trait, by differentiating these differences to establish psychodiagnostic parameters.

To achieve the main goal of the study, the following methods were tested: author’s questionnaire to determine the level of susceptibility to hypochondrial nosology, also used a map of the patient’s primary examination for the diagnosis of medical history, disclosed general information about the individual and his family and social status and multimodal questionnaire for life history problems of human behavior according to S. Kulakov. According to the results of the research, in the group of respondents we notice a dominant feeling of pain, which is present in them with complaints of psychosomatic nature and reflected in actions and behavior. Describing their personal traits, it should be noted that the duration of complaints is periodic and the nature of their manifestation is rather vague, often contrived, and even fictitious. No signs of organic damage to

the nervous system were observed. Somatic indices are within normal limits. We also conducted an associative experiment with isolation in patients of dominant associative thinking, which allowed us to characterize a number of psychological disorders of hypochondriacal character. The highest threshold impulse according to which hypochondriacal disorders manifested in these groups ranged from 5 ± 0,5–7,9–8,54. Falling on the nervous system of patients, it caused the corresponding reactions by the mechanism of the ultra-paradoxical phase and clinically manifested itself as hypochondriacal delirium with concomitant disorienting behavior.

According to the author’s questionnaire in the experimental group of persons dominated from 31 to 40 points, hich means a high probability of having one form of hypochondrial syndrome. That is why the mechanism of origin of hypochondriacal manifestations is reflected in the presence of interoceptive stimuli, which have long enough flowed into the functionally weakened cortex and led to the formation of stagnant, inert sources of excitement underlying hypochondriacal delirium.

Conclusions. In the above observation, we identified objectively ascertaining visceral stimuli that are present or have occurred in the past, and have accompanied a sufficiently long inappropriate subjective response to them from patients. This is because conditioned reflexes, which are formed in the internal organs, are quite difficult to attenuate and are more inert, which is of great importance in the occurrence of hypochondriacal delirium.