Short Definition
UIs are characterized by chronic symptoms often appearing in multiple systems of the body. Common symptoms include overwhelming fatigue, widespread pain, difficulty in concentrating, sleep problems, and gastrointestinal dysfunction. There are few or no pathophysiological findings, yet disability and suffering are quite high (Barsky and Borus 1999).
Categorization
An inclusive classification of UI would include chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia (FMS), premenstrual syndrome (PMS), chronic pelvic pain, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), Gulf War Syndrome, repetition stress injury, chronic whiplash, sick building syndrome, temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD), noncardiac chest pain, hyperventilation syndrome, and tension headaches...
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Johnson, S.K. (2017). Unexplained Illness. In: Kreutzer, J., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_581-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_581-2
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