Comorbid Mental and Other Physical Disorders

Peter Muehrer

A range of studies has shown that many individuals suffer from mental and other physical disorders at the same time. The suffering experienced by individuals as a result, and the cost in lost productivity and health expenditures, is magnified well beyond the suffering and costs associated with either mental or other physical disorders alone. Comorbid disorders occur across the life span, from early childhood through the oldest segments of our population, including those with terminal physical disorders. Yet the scope and nature of comorbid mental and other physical disorders remain largely unknown. Limited reliable and valid national or statewide epidemiological data on the incidence and prevalence of these comorbid disorders exist. Little is known about the mechanisms that link comorbid mental and other physical disorders, particularly mechanisms that have a relatively large influence on the development of these comorbid disorders and can also be modified through intervention. Thus, our ability ...

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