[Aspects of liaison psychiatry care of patients in a university pain clinic].

BACKGROUND: Owing to a rise of psychosomatic comorbidities, the treatment of psychological disorders, which may negatively impact prognosis and therapy, is increasingly becoming a focus of attention for pain outpatient clinics.

AIM: This study investigates and discusses the advantages of liaison psychiatric care in a university pain clinic.

METHODS: In this retrospective study, we investigated all patients who presented to an anaesthesiologically led pain clinic between January and June 2014. The psychiatric history was taken by the liaison psychiatrist of the pain clinic.

RESULTS: In the period investigated, 485 patients were treated as outpatients. A psychiatric diagnosis was present 351 patients (72.4%). The distribution of the diagnoses was comparable with that of a consultation service. Adaptation and affective disorders dominated. The patients were preferentially treated with new generation antidepressants.

CONCLUSION: The constant presence of a liaison psychiatrist allows for timely, specialised care of pain patients in terms of a multimodal therapeutic approach.