Abstract

Medically unexplained physical symptoms (MUPS) are a frequent phenomenon. Understanding adults and adolescents’ lived experience with MUPS is essential for providing adequate care, yet a rigorous synthesis of existing studies is missing. Objective: This study aimed to summarize findings from primary qualitative studies focused on adults’ and adolescents’ experience of living with MUPS. Design: Qualitative studies were searched in the PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, and Medline databases and manually. A total of 23 resources met the inclusion criteria and were subjected to a qualitative meta-summary. Results: Eight themes were found across the set of primary studies, namely, the need to feel understood, struggling with isolation, ‘sense of self’ in strain, facing uncertainty, searching for explanations, ambivalence about diagnosis, disappointed by healthcare, and active coping. Conclusion: The eight themes represent the core struggles adults’ and adolescents’ with MUPS face in their lives, psychologically and socially. Although these themes appear to be universal, the analysis also revealed considerable variability of experience in terms of expectations from healthcare professionals, attitude towards formal diagnoses, ability to cope with the illness, or potential to transform the illness experience into personal growth. Addressing this diversity of needs represents a significant challenge for the healthcare system.

摘要

医学上无法解释的身体症状 (MUPS) 是一种常见现象。了解成人和青少年使用 MUPS 的生活经验对于提供足够的护理至关重要，但缺乏对现有研究的严格综合。目的：本研究旨在总结主要定性研究的结果，这些研究侧重于成人和青少年与 MUPS 一起生活的经历。设计：在 PsycINFO、PsycARTICLES 和 Medline 数据库中手动搜索定性研究。共有 23 种资源符合纳入标准，并进行了定性汇总。结果：在这组初步研究中发现了八个主题，即需要被理解、与孤立作斗争、压力中的“自我意识”、面对不确定性、寻找解释、对诊断的矛盾心理、对医疗保健感到失望和积极应对。结论：这八个主题代表了成年人和青少年在生活中、心理上和社会上面临的 MUPS 核心斗争。尽管这些主题似乎是普遍的，但分析也揭示了在医疗保健专业人员的期望、对正式诊断的态度、应对疾病的能力或将疾病经历转化为个人成长的潜力方面，经验存在相当大的差异。解决这种多样化的需求对医疗保健系统来说是一项重大挑战。