Contagious psychogenic symptoms resulting in epidemics have erupted periodically since the original descriptions of the dancing manias of the Middle Ages (Sirois 1982). They have been investigated by epidemiologists (Cole et al. 1990) and…

The diagnostic category of somatoform disorder NOS is provided for those somatoform syndromes that do not meet the criteria for any specific somatoform disorder (see list of criteria in Table 59-3). This…

Treatments that include some manipulation of the body or its functions have been suggested for conversion disorder. These adjunctive therapies have proven to be invaluable contributions…

Behavioral modification is frequently used in the treatment of conversion, even when the therapist may not be deliberately or consciously employing it as a specific technique.…

Communications that place patients in a double bind about maintenance of conversion symptoms have been described. One such technique is to suggest to a patient who…

Patients with acute conversion symptoms tend to present to emergency departments of hospitals. Rapid and accurate diagnosis of the disorder is important to effect symptom relief…

Effective diagnosis and treatment of conversion disorder require a range of clinical assessments and skills. Among these skills are techniques of obtaining historical information that are…

The term conversion originates with Freud (1896/1946), who hypothesized that anxiety, via unconscious mechanisms, was converted into somatic symptoms.

Sexual frustration and conflicts about sexual impulses were long believed to be…

Introduction

The phenomenology and treatment of conversion symptoms (hysteria) extend back at least 4,000 years (Veith 1965). In this chapter, I focus on treatment of conversion disorder; however, because…