Treatment of burnout: Overlap of diagnosis

Abstract

The burnout syndrome can cover a variety of somatic and psychological symptoms that may appear in very different clinical forms in the individual patient. Because many symptoms of burnout syndrome can be observed in other clearly classifiable disorders, according to ICD-10 or DSM IV, there is a substantial overlap with other diagnoses, particularly with a diagnosis on the anxiety-depression spectrum or related to chronic fatigue syndrome. A symptom-orientated interdisciplinary approach should be applied in the treatment of burnout syndrome with respect to somatic complaints and the integration of strategies of occupational psychology and medicine. Treatment should specifically address the respective core symptoms, such as depression, sleep disturbance, pain or exhaustion.