De Vierdimensionale Klachtenlijst (4DKL) spoort psychische problemen op

Abstract

Terluin B, Terluin M, Prince K, Van Marwijk HWJ. The Four-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire aids in identifying psychological problems. Huisarts Wet 2008;51:251-5. Of adult patients consulting their GP, 25% to 30% have psychological complaints. The Four-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire (De Vierdimensionale Klachtenlijst – 4DSQ) is a handy multidimensional self-report questionnaire that can help the GP in deciding whether further action is required for these patients and, if so, what. The GP can use the 4DSQ to help make a distinction between psychosocial complaints, distress, depression and anxiety, to quantify the seriousness of the problems, to identify somatic complaints and to monitor the course of the problems. Once a patient has completed the 4DSQ, GP and patient can jointly discuss the result and, if necessary, formulate a ‘diagnosis’ and draw up a plan of approach. The 4DSQ measures four dimensions of psychological complaints: distress, depression, anxiety and somatisation. Distress is an aspecific measure of the seriousness of psychological suffering; depression and anxiety are specific symptoms of severe depression and anxiety; somatisation means the extent to which somatic symptoms emanating from tension are experienced as also the tendency to feel consequent distress. Practically the entire range of psychological and psychosomatic complaints can be covered by these four dimensions.