[Psychological diagnostics of functional abdominal pain in children and adolescents].

Given the high prevalence and possible psychosocial consequences of functional abdominal pain in children and adolescents, appropriate instruments for early diagnostics are required to work effectively against long-term chronic courses of this disorder. This report describes several self-report scales and reviews their applicability. In addition, questionnaires and interviews which assess pain intensity and associated factors as well as specific instruments for assessing functional abdominal pain in children and adolescents are introduced. It can be declared that none of the examined instruments grasps all relevant factors of pain. Especially in German there are only few appropriate diagnostic instruments for functional abdominal pain in children.