Journal of the Korean Academy of Family Medicine 1990;11(4):12-19.
Published online April 1, 1990.

건강검진자에서의 만성피로감에 대한 고찰 (Evaluation of tbe Chronic Fatigue of Periodic Health Examination Visitors)

오미경(Oh Mi Kyung)

연세대학교의과대학 가정의학교실

Abstract

Although chronic fatigue is one of the most common complaints in primary care, research has been little. Chronic fatigue is a frustrating problem to assess because it so vague, nonspecific indicator of underlying physiological, medical, psychological pathology.
In order to better understand the chronic fatigue, this study was performed. Among the 510 patients completing the survey in periodic health examination visitor, 243(47.6%) patients has been fatigue for more than 30days and 158(30.9%) patients were not fatigue.
Data were gathered by questionnaires which is consisted of dermographic characteristics, Beck Depression Inventory(BDI), Zung's self-rating anxiety scale, subjective complaints of fatigue and some laboratory tests.
The results obtained were as follows ;
1. Chronic fatigue patients were not different from nonfatigue patients by age, sex, employed time except sleeping time.
2. There was no significant difference between chronic fatigue patients and nonfatigue patients in abnormality of hemoglobin, liver function test, Hepatitis B Antigen, urine suger, chest X-ray.
3. There was significant difference between two groups in depression and anxiety scale. When a BDI cutoff score of 21 was used, 63(25.9%) chronic fatigue patients had scores suggestive of depression and this is more than nonfatigue patients(3.8%). When a Zung's self-rating anxiety scale cutoff score of 50 was used. 30(12.3%) chronic fatigue patients had scores suggestive of anxiety disorder and this is more than nonfatigue patients(3.8%).
4. There was no significant difference according to the degree of fatigue in laboratory tests.
5. There was significant difference according to the degree of fatigue in depression and anxiety scale.