Medically Unexplained Symptoms and General Practitioners: a Comprehensive Survey About Their Attitudes, Experiences and Management Strategies

Background: Medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) are common in primary care and are one of the most challenging clinical encounters for general practitioners (GPs).

Objective: To assess GPs' clinical experience with MUS and its relationship with their gender, age and length of practice.

Methods: Four hundred and thirty-three Italian GPs were invited to complete a questionnaire encompassing the following MUS-related features: workload, cognitive and emotional responses, management strategies, attitudes towards psychological interventions, sources of education and educational needs.

Results: A total of 347 GPs (80.1%) participated in the study. About seven out of ten physicians spent 'much' or 'very much' time and energy for MUS during their daily practice. Fear of neglecting a medical disease was the most frequent (59.1%) response to MUS. Providing reassurance and support (73.8%) and listening to the patient (69.2%) were the most frequent management strategies. More than half of GPs rated psychological interventions as 'much' or 'very much' useful for MUS. However, only a third of GPs were well informed about the role of psychologists in MUS management. The main sources of education about MUS were scientific papers and continuing medical education courses. Most of GPs (77.5%) needed further education about MUS. GPs' younger age and lower length of practice were significantly associated with negative emotional responses to MUS.

Conclusion: The introduction of guidelines for MUS in Italian primary care settings would promote a collaborative clinical approach to MUS and more formal training on this topic.