Psychosocial Factors, Mental Comorbidities and Related Biomarkers Interacting with the Onset and Course of Somatic Diseases

Facing demographical and social development, the number of patients suffering from chronic somatic diseases will grow in the future. Current projections of mortality and burden of disease by cause until 2030 predict a dramatic shift from communicable to non-communicable diseases. In line with these thoughts, in 2005, the World Health Organization reported, that more than 30% of all years lived with disability are attributable to neuropsychiatric disorders including dementia and common mental disorders such as depressive disorders, and alcohol-use disorders, among others.

Comorbid neuropsychiatric conditions can lead to long-term disability. They may complicate help-seeking, increase the chance for the manifestation of somatic diseases, negatively affect the vulnerability for infectious diseases and their long-term consequences. Finally, the patients´ health-related quality of life will be tremendously reduced and mortality risk increased by comorbid mental disorders.

Currently, there is a lack of knowledge concerning the shared and separate aetiopathogenesis of somatic and mental health conditions. The close interactions of stress axes with pro-inflammatory, TH1- and TH2- mediated immunological processes as well as neurotransmitter systems need to be further unraveled in order to delineate appropriate assessment and treatment strategies. Research addressing the effectiveness of adequate intervention programs such as integrated care models, consultation-liaison psychiatry and psychosomatic medicine, adjuvant psychosocial interventions and medication which addresses both entities, is still lacking.

Research on the following, is welcome:

• Addressing the specific relationships and associations between chronic somatic diseases of all medical areas and comorbid mental disorders.

• Investigating risk factors for secondary mental disorders and different courses of mental disorders (e.g. resilience, delayed onset, persistence, recovery) in chronically ill patients

• Elucidating the shared and separate aetiopathogenetic mechanisms of somatic diseases and mental disorders to allow early identification of somatically ill patients at risk for the development of comorbid mental disorders and vice versa, mentally ill patients at risk for the development of comorbid somatic health conditions.

• Evaluating intervention and assessment strategies to improve the care and management of chronically ill patients with comorbid mental disorders.

• Specific interest: addressing biomarkers, risk factors and care of post-COVID (Corona Virus disease)-syndrome

Keywords: psychosocial risk/ salutogenetic variables, mental comorbidities, acute/ chronic somatic disease, adjuvant psychosocial interventions, Post-COVID-syndrome

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