Compared to Somatic Symptom Disorder, Illness Anxiety Disorder is characterized by:

• A. Minimal or no somatic symptoms and high illness-related anxiety
• B. Significant somatic symptoms and low anxiety
• C. Predominant mood symptoms
• D. Cognitive impairment without anxiety

Answer: (A)

The key idea is distinguishing illness-related anxiety from actual bodily symptom burden. Illness Anxiety Disorder is defined by high anxiety about having or developing a serious illness, with little to no somatic symptoms driving the worry. The person is preoccupied with health, often seeks excessive reassurance or, conversely, avoids medical care, and the concern persists despite little or no physical symptoms.

This makes the statement describing minimal or no somatic symptoms paired with high illness-related anxiety the best fit for Illness Anxiety Disorder. By contrast, significant somatic symptoms with relatively low health anxiety point to Somatic Symptom Disorder, mood-focused or other features point to different disorders, and cognitive impairment without anxiety isn’t characteristic of these illnesses.