Patterns of Hypochondriasis in Population Visiting Tertiary Care Settings in Karachi

Objective: To assess the patterns seen in population visiting tertiary care facilities in Karachi Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2013 an two tertiary care hospitals of Karachi. A totalof 398 participants were enrolled in the study through convenience sampling technique. Hypochondriasis wasassessed using Illness Attitude Scale (IAS) by Kellner. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20. Differencein mean scores among different groups was taken out through Independent sample t test andANOVA, associations were taken out using chi-square test. P value less than 0.05 was taken as significant. Results: Out of the total participants, 53.8% were suffering from hypochondriasis. When categorized bygender, males were 45.8% and females 62.9% (p value 0.001). When categorized by marital status, it wasfound that 58.6% of married participants were hypochondriac whereas only 37.1% singles were hypochondriac(P value 0.001).Age group between 25-35 years had the maximum number of hypochondriacs (30%). Conclusion: The pattern of distribution of hypochondriasis was found out to be similar with that of otherstudies. Females are predominantly more hypochondriac as compared to males