The combination of health anxiety and somatic symptoms: Specificity to anxiety sensitivity cognitive concerns among patients in primary care

Prior research has found that health anxiety is related to poor patient outcomes in primary care settings. Health anxiety is characterized by at least two presentations: with either severe or no/mild somatic symptoms. Preliminary data indicate that anxiety sensitivity may be important for understanding the presentation of health anxiety with severe somatic symptoms. We further examined whether the combination of health anxiety and somatic symptoms was related to anxiety sensitivity. Participants were adults presenting for treatment at a community health center (N=538). As predicted, the interactive effect between health anxiety and somatic symptoms was associated with anxiety sensitivity cognitive concerns. Health anxiety shared a stronger association with anxiety sensitivity cognitive concerns when coupled with severe, relative to mild, somatic symptoms. Contrary to predictions, the interactive effect was not associated with the other dimensions of anxiety sensitivity. We discuss the potential relevancy of anxiety sensitivity cognitive concerns to the combined presentation of health anxiety and severe somatic symptoms, as well as how this dimension of anxiety sensitivity could be treated in primary care settings.