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Functional disorders are medical conditions with abnormal bodily functions caused by stress or psychological problems. They can be difficult to diagnose and treat, and may require input from multiple physicians. Chronic pain with no known cause is a common example. Some psychiatric conditions may also be associated with functional disorders. The term can cause confusion in different medical specialties. Treatment may be possible without identifying the cause. Patients should ask for clarification and take appropriate steps to avoid future episodes.
A functional disorder is a medical condition in which one or more bodily functions are abnormal but the problem does not appear to have a detectable organic cause, but originates from stress or psychological problems. Functional disorders can be difficult to diagnose and treat and may require input from several physicians to ensure that the patient receives appropriate help. It is important to be aware that while the causes may be psychological, these symptoms are not made up and the patient is experiencing a real physiological problem even if the cause is difficult to pinpoint.
A common example of a functional disorder is chronic pain with no known cause. Some people develop chronic pain in response to inflammation or injury, and in their cases, the origins of the condition are easy to understand. Other people may experience chronic pain with no clear cause. They have no underlying disease or history of injury that could explain the pain, but the pain experience is authentic and the patient experiences relief from analgesia, electrical nerve stimulation, and other measures.
Some psychiatric conditions may be associated with a functional disorder. Patients with depression may experience symptoms such as extreme pain or joint soreness or fatigue, with no clear physiological cause such as injury or lack of sleep. People can also experience changes in brain function in conjunction with a psychological problem, although such a condition is not necessarily known to cause brain abnormalities.
Within some medical specialties, the term “functional disorder” can be used in different ways and this can cause confusion. To orthopedic surgeons, these disorders represent congenital malformations of the bone and surrounding tissue and have an origin in the form of a developmental problem. When they use the term, they don’t mean that a patient has acquired a medical problem with no known cause.
It may be possible to treat a functional disorder without ever narrowing down the cause, and in some cases, doctors may attribute conditions with potential organic causes to unknown sources because the focus is on treatment, rather than finding out why the patient developed the condition at all. the first place. For patients who are unsure of what a doctor means when they use this term, it may be helpful to ask for clarification. This may also be important for patients who want to ensure they are taking appropriate steps to avoid future episodes of illness or impaired function.
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