Complaints of dyspnea and their associations with personality traits in patients referred to psychotherapy in a day hospital.

Background: Breathing difficulties are present in different medical conditions, yet seem to be underresearched in psychiatric patients.

Aim: Assessment of prevalence of dyspnea complaints and their associations with personality traits in patients with neurotic or personality disorders referred to psychotherapy.

Methods: Retrospective chart review of medical records of 2450 patients with diagnoses F4-F6 (ICD-10). Analyses of associations between dyspnea reported in a symptom checklist SCL-O and pathological scores in the Neurotic Personality Questionnaire were carried out using univariate and multivariate regression analyses with ORs and 95%CI estimated with licensed STATISTICA 13 (StatSoftPL) software, and R version 4.1.0, RStudio version 1.4.1717 software.

Results: Dyspnea was reported by 46.3% women and 36.6% men (14.5% and 10.1% respectively assessed it as severely burdensome). Univariate regression analysis revealed several significant associations between reporting dyspnea or its extreme intensity and pathological scores in the NPQ. Multivariate regression analyses in women confirmed the importance of impulsiveness and exaltation for dyspnea occurrence, and feeling of being dependent on the environment, demobilization, and narcissistic attitude for its extreme intensity. In men impulsiveness, sense of being in danger, irrationality, and ponderings were associated with the presence of dyspnea, and sense of being in danger and envy with its extreme intensity.

Conclusions: Complaints of dyspnea were pretty frequent. Several personality traits measured by the NPQ questionnaire were predictors of their occurrence and feeling of extreme burden.