Temperament of Children and Adolescents Presenting with Unexplained Physcial Symtoms

The aims of the study were (1) To analyse the temperament of children and adolescents presenting with Somatoform disorder and Dissociative (conversion) disorder and (2) To evaluate the nosological status of conversion disorder from the angle of temperament. Temperament of 30 children and adolescents having the diagnosis of either Dissociative (Conversion) disorder or Somatoform disorder were compared with temperament of 30 matched normal control groupTemperament was assessed by using Temperament Measurement Schedule (Malhotra, 1982). We found that children with Somatoform disorder and Dissociative (conversion) disorder had characteristic temperaments of low activity, low emotionality, low rhythmicity and low distractibility. Children with Somatoform disorder were less approachable than children with Conversion disorder, otherwise temperamentally there were no differences between these two disorders.